Serving on the board of the Library Foundation, Ashley Linden, of Linden's Jewelry, watched board members work for years raising funds for an addition to the Bella Vista Public Library. When she read about another jeweler with a fun idea for a fundraiser, it clicked. She decided to organize a very special Easter Egg Hunt to benefit the library.
Linden rounded up 499 gemstones. Some were in her shop, some were donated by suppliers. She added a diamond valued at $1,000. She stuffed them, one at a time, into 500 Easter Eggs.
During the week of March 15 to 19, anyone can come into her shop and donate $10 to the Foundation and they will receive an egg. One person will find the diamond.
"My dream is we hand over $5,000 to the library," she said. She has already heard from people who want an egg, even some people who are from outside the area and want to have their egg shipped. She's confident that all 500 eggs will go.
The gemstones, as well as the diamond, can be set into a piece of jewelry, she said. There are several different types of stones included.
"We are very very close to the groundbreaking," she said about the new library addition. The city operates the library, but the Foundation owns the building. Fundraising for an addition has been going on since 2014. "That library is a busy, well-used library. They definitely need the space," she said.
General News on 04/17/2019