When I tell people that I am on the Board of Directors for the Geneva Community Chest I typically get one of two reactions. The first one is “Oh, that’s great, good for you!” And the second is, “Community Chest? Like Monopoly?”

The second reaction leads me to explain exactly what we at the Community Chest do and what we are all about.

The role of the Community Chest is simple, an all-volunteer board of directors, consisting of community and business leaders, annually reviews requests for funds from organizations that provide a wide variety of help to citizens of Geneva and the surrounding area. The board then allocates a portion of its annual fund-raising goal to deserving agencies.

In order to receive any funds from the Geneva Community Chest an agency must serve people from Geneva. About 95 percent of the money raised goes directly to the local agencies that need and deserve it most. Supporting the Geneva Community Chest is helping to support those in the community that need it the most.

There are many ways to the support the Community Chest, the quickest and easiest way is to donate straight to our website, http://www.genevacommunitychest.org/.

You can also help support the Geneva Community Chest by coming out any of our many events. Our next event is our Annual Wine Gala, our theme this year is, “A Passport to Taste.” The event will be held at 6:30 p.m. June 7 at the Eagle Brook Country Club.

The event will feature heavy appetizers and 18 to 20 wines. Tickets are only $50 a person.

If you are interested please, e-mail zploppert@yahoo.com or contact anyone on the Geneva Community Chest.