Hector Area Lions Club

11/02/2026

🇺🇸🎁 A LITTLE FUN, A LITTLE GIVING, AND A WHOLE LOT OF GOOD! ❤️

What do mystery gifts, a lively auctioneer, a little friendly bidding, and some great company have in common?

They’re all part of Making Spirits Bright! 🎄

Sure, you might go home with something you never knew you needed (or something you still aren’t quite sure what to do with 😂), but that’s part of the fun!

The real reason we come together is to support our local veterans.

All proceeds from Making Spirits Bright will be donated to the Schuyler County Veterans Association, where funds are used to help area veterans as needs arise.

These are our neighbors, friends, and community members who have served our country. And this is one small way we can give back.

So grab a new or gently used item to donate, bring your friends and family, and join us for an afternoon of laughs, surprises, snacks, and a little auction excitement with Curtis Connelly!

🎁 Bring something to give.
🔨 Maybe find something you didn’t know you needed.
❤️ Know that every bid supports a great cause.

Because when it’s all said and done, it’s not what you get… it’s what you can give. 🇺🇸

📅 Sunday, November 15
⏰ 3–6 PM
📍 VLH Fire Hall

Everyone is welcome! Let’s fill the hall, have some fun, and show our local veterans how much this community cares.

10/31/2026

🎁 Good at clues…take the challenge🎄

One of our favorite parts of Making Spirits Bright is the mystery gifts!

You can bring a new or gently used item wrapped or unwrapped, but if you wrap it, we have one request…

GIVE US A REALLY GOOD CLUE! 😂

Funny? Absolutely.
Clever? Even better.
Just mysterious enough to make someone curious? Perfect!

For example:

☕ A travel coffee mug: “For someone who’s always on the go but never fully awake.”

🧩 A puzzle: “Hours of entertainment, with a slight possibility of frustration.”

🔦 A flashlight: “For those moments when things get a little dark.”

Now it’s YOUR turn!

Drop your funniest or cleverest mystery gift clue in the comments! We may just inspire a few people to get creative.

And remember, all the fun is for a wonderful cause — supporting Schuyler County veterans.

📅 November 15 | 3–6 PM
📍 VLH Fire Hall

10/28/2026

🎄🎁 A BENEFIT AUCTION? HOW THE HECK DOES THAT WORK?! 🤔😂

We get it. You've seen the flyer for Making Spirits Bright and thought, "That sounds fun... but what exactly am I supposed to DO?"

Do I bring something? Do I buy something? Am I going to accidentally come home with a ceramic rooster? 🐓

Well, let's clear a few things up!

The Hector Area Lions Club is hosting Making Spirits Bright, and here's how this whole thing works:

🎁 STEP 1: FIND SOMETHING TO BRING!
A new or gently used item. Something fun, useful, unique, or just plain interesting. It doesn't have to be expensive or fancy!

STEP 2: WRAP IT... OR DON'T!
Both are perfectly fine! But if you wrap it, we LOVE a good clue about what's inside. Funny, clever, mysterious — get creative! Half the fun is trying to figure out what people brought!

🔨 STEP 3: LET THE FUN BEGIN!
Our auctioneer, Curtis Connelly, is more than just the guy calling out bids. He's practically the entertainment! He keeps the crowd laughing, the bidding moving, and the afternoon full of surprises.

🙋 STEP 4: BID IF SOMETHING CATCHES YOUR EYE!
See something you like? Bid on it! See something ridiculous? You might want to bid on that too. And if you get outbid? That's okay — every dollar is going to a great cause!

❤️ STEP 5: EVERYBODY WINS!
All proceeds go to the Schuyler County Veterans Association to help local veterans as needs arise.

And here's the thing — you don't have to know anything about auctions to come! You don't even have to bid. Come enjoy some snacks, drinks, laughs, and good company. Bring the kids, bring your neighbors, bring your friends!

Because at the end of the day, it's not what you get. It's what you can give.❤️

📅 Sunday, November 15
⏰ 3–6 PM
📍 Valois Logan Hector Fire Hall
🎄 OPEN TO EVERYONE!

Now that you know how it works, we have a challenge for you...and who knows...maybe that ceramic rooster is exactly the thing that your kitchen has been missing.

Tag TWO people who have never been to Making Spirits Bright and bring them along!

Let's fill the hall, have a whole lot of fun, and do something wonderful for our local veterans!

10/28/2026

A good excuse to add more pie to your dessert plate on Thanksgiving!

What a gorgeous way to begin Thanksgiving! Join us as we celebrate our beloved community and support the Watkins Glen School Food Pantry! No registration fee but donations of $ and non perishable food items are welcome! Ideas: Granola bars! Cereal! Holiday baking mixes! Jars of peanut butter! Jam!
Walk! Jog! Run! Strollers are so welcome! We’ll be so happy to see you!

10/27/2026

🍇🚒 ONE MONTH OUT — A VERY SPECIAL THANK YOU 🚒🍇

Now that we are one month out from this year’s Hector Harvest 5K, we’ve been reflecting on what a wonderful day it was — and we realized there are still a few very important thank-yous to share.

A heartfelt THANK YOU to Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards, Dalrymple Farms, and the Valois Logan Hector Fire Department — three local Hector businesses and organizations that are absolutely crucial to making this event possible each year. 💜

Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards generously allows us to use The Oasis as our race-day home base. From registration and race morning preparations to the post-race gathering, The Oasis has become an important part of the Hector Harvest 5K tradition.

Dalrymple Farms gives us something that makes this race truly special — our beautiful vineyard course. Their property provides the incredible scenery and setting that make the Hector Harvest 5K such a unique experience.

The Valois Logan Hector Fire Department helps provide course support and safety, giving their time to help keep our runners, walkers, volunteers, and spectators safe throughout the event.

These three are more than supporters — they are truly part of the foundation of the Hector Harvest 5K.

Thank you for your generosity, partnership, and commitment to our community. We simply couldn’t do it without you!

🏃‍♀️🍇 RUN • WALK • GROW OUR COMMUNITY 🌱

10/26/2026

Today we would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Jeanne and Jeff Gridley as Friends of the Harvest for their support of the Hector Harvest 5K.

Community events like the Hector Harvest 5K are only possible because of the generosity of people who care deeply about Hector and the traditions that bring our community together. Jeanne and Jeff’s support helped us continue building an event that celebrates our beautiful area while bringing people together to run, walk, and support a great cause.

We are so grateful for their kindness and willingness to be part of what makes this event special. Thank you, Jeanne and Jeff, for helping us grow this race and strengthen our community.

Thank you for being Friends of the Harvest!
💜💙💚

09/27/2026

🏁💚💙 THAT’S A WRAP ON THE 2026 HECTOR HARVEST 5K! 💙💚🏁

You came. You ran. You walked. You cheered. You drank the coffee. You conquered the hills — including that downhill finish — and you helped make today such a wonderful morning in Hector. ❤️

A huge THANK YOU to every runner and walker who signed up, every volunteer who helped make the day run smoothly, everyone who stood along the course and cheered, our incredibly generous sponsors and supporters, and everyone who helped behind the scenes.

This race is a fundraiser for the Hector Area Lions Club, which means your participation helps us continue putting money right back into our community. That’s what makes this morning about so much more than 3.1 miles. 🦁

And now… let’s hear it for our 2026 winners! 🏆

🥇 OVERALL MEN

1. Everett Cox — 19:06
2. Derek Bower — 22:24
3. Elliott Holland — 23:05

🥇 OVERALL WOMEN

1. Morgan Saks — 24:49
2. Sarah Swinnerton — 25:45
3. Raelee Smith — 25:52

🏅 AGE GROUP WINNERS

14 & Under: Colton Thomson / Gemma Staub
15–20: Isabelle Waters (the men’s 15–20 runners placed in the overall awards)
21–30: Benjamin Slaton / Katie Shepard
31–40: Eric Christenson / Tanner Mazur
41–50: Jason Hazlitt / Daniela DiCicco
51–60: John Miles Jr. / Tammy Watkins
61–70: Alan Lockett / Beverly Whalen
71 & Over: Charles Fausold / Janet Edwards

And congratulations to all of the finishers. Whether you were chasing a trophy, a personal best, trying your first 5K, walking with friends, or simply proving to yourself that you could do it — you crossed that finish line. 👟❤️

We hope you had as much fun out there as we did putting it together.

From all of us at the Hector Area Lions Club — thank you for showing up for the race and for our community.

Now go put your feet up. You earned it. 😂

Full Results at the link below.

⁠ https://falconracetiming.com/event/hector-harvest-5k-hector-ny-3/

09/27/2026

🏃‍♀️🍇 IT’S RACE DAY, HECTOR! 🍇🏃‍♂️

The Hector Harvest 5K Walk/Run starts at 9:00 AM at Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards, and we cannot wait to see everyone.

Maybe you’re racing for a PR.

Maybe you’re walking with friends.

Maybe you were peer-pressured into this sometime in the last 24 hours and are currently questioning your life choices. 😂

All are welcome.

And if you never quite got around to registering online, we’re not giving up on you yet — race-day registration is available at bib pickup this morning.

So grab your sneakers and come spend the morning with us.

🍇 Hector Harvest 5K Walk/Run
📅 TODAY — Sunday, September 27
🏃Bib pickup opens at 8:00 am
⏰ 9:00 AM: race start
📍 Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards

To every runner, walker, sponsor, volunteer, donor, cheerleader, and community member who helped make today possible: THANK YOU.

Now let’s go have some fun. 💚💙👟

09/26/2026

🍂👟 TOMORROW. IS. RACE. DAY. 👟🍂

We’ve spent the last week giving you reasons to join us…

☕ There’s coffee.
👕 There’s great swag.
🌄 There’s a beautiful Hector course.
🏃 There’s that ridiculously fun downhill finish.
❤️ And every registration helps the Hector Area Lions Club give back to our community.

At this point, we’re really running out of things to bribe you with.

And yes, because we live in the Finger Lakes, Mother Nature would also like a little attention. Luckily, we have Drew at Finger Lakes Weather and his glorious “no hype” forecasts to remind us that not every dramatic national weather map means we need to start building a boat. ☔️

So if a few spotty showers show up? We’ll survive. We may even look extra determined in the race photos. 😉

Run it. Walk it. Bring a friend. Laugh a little. Maybe get a little damp. And spend your Sunday morning doing something fun that also does some good right here in our community.

And if you still haven’t signed up yet…

If you miss your last chance to register online today, don’t panic. 😅

We DO have race-day registration at bib pickup.

So there is still time for your friends, family, coworkers, or that one person who has been relentlessly peer-pressuring you all week to finally wear you down. 😂

🍇 Hector Harvest 5K Walk/Run
📅 TOMORROW — Sunday, September 27
🏃 8:00 am- Bib pick up is open in the Oasis.
⏰ 9:00 AM- race start
📍 Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards

One more sleep. One more chance to sign up.

Come on, Hector. Let’s do this. 💚💙

https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Hector/HectorHarvest5KWalkRun