To help its two charities before the holidays, our Evanston office held two very different fundraisers, raising about $1,600 for the Child Care Center of Evanston and Connections for the Homeless.

The first was to celebrate Baird & Warner’s 150^th. But it wasn’t just a birthday party, the office also had an art show for eight local artists, with 20 percent of art sales going to the Good Will Network.

During the event, a trio of musicians from Evanston’s Young Artist Group entertained the more than 150 attendants.

The office also had its annual holiday plant sale of poinsettias and cyclamens. The office sold about 100 plants.

The Evanston Good Will Network supported its charity Connections for the Homeless by attending its annual Spring Benefit.

In total, the office gave about $2,300 for 23 Sales Associates and their guests to attend the dinner and dance. Many also donated by participating in the silent auction.

“Everyone gained greater exposure to and knowledge about the issues surrounding homelessness from the speakers and awards program while enjoying an entertaining and relaxing evening of socializing with between 225 and 250 other folks in our community,” said Gerry Gibbs, a Sales Associate in Evanston and a member of the charity’s board.

Connections for the Homeless operates several programs including a street outreach, a comprehensive shelter and treatment program and preventive and supportive services for families at risk.

The Evanston office gave checks totaling $970 to Connections for the Homeless and the Child Care Center of Evanston. The funds were raised through its holiday plant sale of poinsettias and cyclamens in late November.

Sales Associates Gerry Gibbs and Jon Bogie presented the check to the organizations respective executive directors: Helen Roberts-Evans at the Child Care Center of Evanston and Will Sunblad at Connections for the Homeless.

The Child Care Center of Evanston’s mission is to strengthen families by providing high quality, affordable day care for their children. Its utmost priority is to help children from all socioeconomic backgrounds gain the skills needed to succeed in school while fostering the shared community values of cooperation and respect for one another.

Connections for the Homeless, which helped 585 families last year, works with communities in northeast Cook County through direct services and education to prevent and reduce homelessness.