14th annual Sugar Plum holiday home tour set for Dec. 6

Some of the area’s finest historic and contemporary homes will open their doors Sunday, Dec. 6, from 1 to 5 p.m. for the 14th annual Sugar Plum Tour.

The Sugar Plum Tour is Akron’s premier holiday home tour and the signature fundraiser of the Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation. Since 2001, more than 5,000 tour-goers have experienced the twinkling lights, roaring fires, sparkling trees and extraordinary holiday decorations of nearly 80 homes throughout Greater Akron. Last year’s Sugar Plum Tour raised nearly $85,000 for the fund, which supports programs that positively impact the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community, as well as Greater Akron as a whole.

Each year, the featured homes are unique and new to the tour. This year’s tour will showcase six exquisitely decorated homes in West Akron and Peninsula. Guests at the patron ticket level will also be invited to a private party at an exclusive seventh private residence in Bath from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The first home on the tour is an 1883 farmhouse in West Akron that was featured on HGTV for its unique architecture. This distinctive house is elegantly furnished with European estate sale finds and rich fabrics. Next, tour-goers will have the opportunity to visit three magnificent homes in the Sunset View allotment built in the early to mid-20th century. Nearby, one of Akron’s iconic Tudor Revival mansions will open its doors, revealing linen fold paneling, leaded windows and glowing fireplaces. Finally, the newest home on the tour was just finished in March 2015. The owners of this gorgeous home in Peninsula will be celebrating their first Christmas season in their new house and will be decking it in beautiful holiday finery.

The patron party home is a completely renovated 5,000-square-foot house in Bath that was originally built as a barn in the early 19th century. The owners of this wonderful home have transformed it into a Christmas wonderland. They are the consummate hosts and look forward to welcoming patron guests to their beautiful and eclectic home.

Tickets for this exciting event go on sale Monday, Nov. 9, at 10 a.m. General admission tickets are $25 and include the six-home, self-guided tour. Patron tickets are $150 and include the self-guided tour of six homes, an invitation to the private, catered party at an exclusive seventh residence in Bath, as well as a limited-edition Zeber-Martell holiday ornament. Additional limited-edition commemorative ornaments designed by local artist Claudia Zeber-Martell will be available for $20. This year’s patron party hosts have not set a limit to the number of guests who may attend, so tour-goers are encouraged to take advantage of this special opportunity.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.sugarplumtour.org/tickets or by calling Akron Community Foundation at 330-376-8522. Cash-only general admission tickets are also available at Angel Falls Coffee Company, 792 W. Market St. in Akron. General tour attendee sign-in and tour guide pickup will begin at 12:30 p.m. on the day of the tour at Angel Falls Coffee Company. Patron ticketholders and sponsors may pick up their tickets, tour guides, and holiday ornaments at the West Side Bakery, 2303 W. Market St. in Akron, beginning at 12:30 p.m.

New to the tour this year is a seven-day online silent auction that will begin at noon on Monday, Nov. 9, and continue through noon on Monday, Nov. 16. Bidders will have the opportunity to win more than 30 extravagant items, including a private airplane ride; an Italian feast for eight prepared by a private chef in the winner’s home; a seven-day vacation for up to eight people in Provincetown, Massachusetts; a Don Drumm sculpture; a brand new 40-inch LED smart HDTV; and much more. Auction items can be previewed now at www.akroncf.org/sugarplumauction.

The 2015 Sugar Plum Tour is presented by Leaf Filter. Other major sponsors include Akron Life Magazine, Ameriprise Financial, Ron Bailey and Bill Edwards, Bluegrass Irrigation & Lighting Inc., Cannan Construction, Gervasi Vineyard/The Twisted Olive, Gregory Hail and Matthew Culler, Jones Group Interiors Inc., Net Revenue Associates, PNC Bank, Savoir-Faire Event Planning, Rick and Michelle Shultz, UBS Financial – Staats/Rizor Group, and Zavodny Dental. All proceeds from the event support the Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation.

About the Gay Community Endowment Fund

Founded in 2001, the Gay Community Endowment Fund is a permanent philanthropic endowment of Akron Community Foundation. It facilitates and perpetuates philanthropy by supporting programs and services that support or positively impact the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, as well as the entire greater Akron community. Since its inception, the fund has grown to approximately $1 million while reinvesting nearly $360,000 into the community. Contributions of any amount are welcome and support future grantmaking. Checks may be sent to the Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation, 345 W. Cedar St., Akron, OH 44307-2407. For more information, or to contribute, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.gaycommunityfund.org.

About Akron Community Foundation

Celebrating 60 years of building community philanthropy, Akron Community Foundation embraces and enhances the work of charitable people who make a permanent commitment to the good of the community. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. Today, it is a philanthropic endowment of nearly $191 million with a growing family of 500 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation’s funds have awarded approximately $127 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.akroncf.org.