The cafeteria, lower and upper commons, and gym are bustling with cheerful faces and buoyant voices calling out to others. But this isn’t any normal day at Cherokee trail. Along with a large clutter of people, there are vendors with tables selling food, jewelry, handmade art and crafts, candles, lotions and many other amazing gift ideas for this holiday season.

CT was filled with holiday spirit on Saturday Nov. 11, 2017, when the PTCO organized this year’s holiday craft fair. Vendors and customers entered the school at a sharp time of nine am when the fair started, and by ten o’clock the commons, cafeteria, and gym were nearly full. There was an array of gifts being sold, and many vendors behind them. Most of the faces that could be seen at the fair were people living in the CT community. One vendor, Michelle Welch, sells her hand painted ornaments, glass art, and wooden items all around the community. Her kids went to Eaglecrest, and she continues to sell her items at schools such as Grandview, Smoky Hill, and of course Cherokee Trail. “This is one of the best shows that I do, and I do a lot of them. I do Grandview and Smoky Hill, and this one is one of the best because a lot of people are here,” Michelle said.

Another table settled in the back corner of the gym was selling hand embroidered towels. The towels were made by  Cathy Tutko, who was accompanied by her husband at the craft fair. Tutko, like Welch, participates in a lot of fairs in the community, but this year she made an effort to secure a place in CT’s fair. “We called in June and July to make sure we got in this year,” Tutko said. She also went on to say that, “I do probably five of them in this area, so you see a lot of the same people.”

At the fair there were also a few students from clubs at CT that were selling items. One in particular, CT’s Technology Student Association, was selling wooden furniture and customizable decorations. They were selling these items to raise money for Erika’s lighthouse. “It’s an organization that tried to cut down stigma around teen depression and raise awareness for it,” Megan Bustamanti, a member of TSA explained. This was TSA’s first year participating in the holiday craft fair, but Bustamanti said that the reason they decided to do it was because, “We think it’s a good thing to do and we have a good cause.”

The holiday craft fair not only brings holiday joy into the school and community, it also raises money and brings in profits. Welch informed me that the vendors pay a “booth fee” which is paid upfront as a fee for participating in the fair. The money from the booth fees goes towards the school, and all the money made by the vendors is a profited by them. The craft fair creates a balance that unites the community while also giving back to it.