Yaak WINGS cancer fundraiser set for May 11

It’s time to get ready for the 27th Annual Yaak Wings Benefit in support of those dealing with cancer in Lincoln County.

The “Swing into Spring” event will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 11, at the Yaak River Tavern and Mercantile at 29238 Yaak River Road.

The event is sponsored and hosted by the Yaak River Tavern and Mercantile and the Dirty Shame.

For a $15 donation, there will be a dinner, bucket raffle, silent and live auctions, 50/50 raffle, wine and alcohol pull. Dinner begins at 4:30 p.m. and the live auction starts at 7 p.m.

Living in Lincoln County, specialized treatment requires numerous trips to Kalispell, Coeur D’Alene, Seattle or cross country. Insurance will cover most of the treatment costs but not the travel costs associated with getting to the hospital or the living expenses needed to remain close to the hospital.

Lincoln County WINGS was established in the late 1990s to meet this need. The WINGS organization grew out of discussions among a cancer patient, a doctor, and a social worker in the Flathead Valley.

The cancer patient wanted to find a way to give back to the community for the financial generosity he or she received from friends and other community members during the very long treatment process.

These discussions grew to include people from the Lincoln County communities of Eureka, Libby, Troy and the Yaak.

The Yaak WINGS event started in 1997 when Suzanne and Keith Hagerty, owners of the Yaak River Mercantile and Tavern, hosted the first WINGS live auction and Cinco De Mayo dinner as close to May 5 as possible. They wanted to extend the fund raising for WINGS to the Yaak.

The Tavern was decorated in a Mexican theme complete with piñatas, and a live auction followed the dinner. The event has grown and changed over the years to include raffles, a silent auction, live music and the live auction.

WINGS is a zero-overhead organization, so all monies raised go to those in need.

The 2023 event brought in $55,450.17. This was the most money raised in the history of the Yaak WINGS event.

These funds helped more than 100 Lincoln County cancer patients. Cancer does not discriminate by age, as WINGS recipients are as young as teen-agers and as old as their late 80s.

For more information about the event or to donate items for the auction, please call the event chairperson, Kristy Hensel, at 295-7710.

Check out the Facebook page www.facebook/yaakwings for updates on the event and to preview auction items.