The Alyssa Alvin Foundation for Hope (AAFH) held its 7th annual La Fiesta de Arte fundraiser at El Molcajete Restaurant in Geneva, IL on Sunday, September 19,2021. The event was a success thanks to the 75 guests who attended, our local business sponsors and our volunteers! Our guests enjoyed the delicious appetizers and beverages provided by El Molcajete. In addition, our guests were able to bid thru our silent auction on art from local artists and various gift baskets from local businesses & supporters of AAFH. DJ-Rick Guerrero, Alyssa’s cousin, provided lively music for everyone’s entertainment.
This year we featured 2 local artists, Al Oschner-Geneva HS art teacher and Alexandria (Alex) Downing -GHS Senior art student. Both Al & Alex live in Geneva. Alex enjoys creating art and shared her cancer story with the audience along with displaying some of her beautiful artwork. Alex was diagnosed with Stage 2B Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in June 2018 but is now in remission. During the times of her treatments, she continued creating art and more so now to the present. Al is known for drawing caricatures of his subjects and had a line of guests to get their caricature made by him.
We thank Alyssa’s cousin, Rick Guerrero for donating his time to DJ for the cause. Rick has been performing as a DJ since 1985. He has performed in various events be they private, birthdays, weddings, night clubs and radio station 90.5 FM WCYC. Currently, Rick is live streaming his DJ sets on various social media platforms. Visit DJRickGuerrero.com for upcoming events and Live Streams.
Alyssa was a skilled violinist and pianist who also developed an interest in the visual arts. These were the activities she loved and became even more important to her during her ongoing cancer treatments. We recognized that there was an important niche to fill in providing critically ill young patients with creative outlets in art and music. That is why we created this Foundation in Alyssa’s memory. Through the work of AAFH and our community of friends and supporters, we carry on Alyssa’s legacy of love for the arts and compassion for others undergoing the same struggles of fighting cancer.
We also want to thank the businesses for their generous donations including: El Molcajete Restaurant, Gia Mia/Livia Restaurants, Riganatos Old World Grille, Fox Jewelers, State Street Jewelers, Liz & Kate Accessory Boutique, Dangles for Women, Instrument Exchange, The Little Traveler, Graham’s Chocolate, Kernels Gourmet Popcorn, 360 Flavors & Spice, Green Street Grille, Colonial Café & Syrup, Anastasia II, Stockholm’s, Preservation, Kat Kotz, Phil Loarie, Amy’s Hallmark and Starbucks in Geneva.
Heartfelt thanks to all the winners of the auction items, DJ-Rick Guerrero, our volunteers and our host sponsor, El Molcajete Restaurant!
We hope you all had a wonderful afternoon and hope to see you at next year’s La Fiesta de Arte 2022!
