CLEARLAKE OAKS — The inaugural Frank Toney Memorial Scholarship fundraiser was held April 9 at the Moose Lodge in Clearlake Oaks with great success. The sold-out event raised enough money to fund three $500 scholarships for Lower Lake High School (LLHS) students.
“The dinner was a huge success. We did well enough that we have a comfortable start-up fund for next year. Our goal next year is five $500 scholarships,” Frank”s brother, Duane Toney, said. “We were so happy with the outcome and the response from the public was overwhelming. This was one of the reasons the following afternoon we sat down and started thinking of what we will do next year.”
Toney, who was awarded the Stars of Lake County “Local Hero” award posthumously in March, was known as a faithful contributor to the community. The 1983 graduate of LLHS served his community as a little league coach, government board director, CalTrans employee, emergency medical provider, fearless firefighter and was a brave hero to many. He died unexpectedly in May 2010.
The recent steak dinner fundraiser was a tribute to Toney, who was known for his love of a good steak. Duane Toney, said his brother”s trademark on shift at the fire station was his desire to cook.
Firefighter JJ Johns served as the evening”s chef with assistance from students of Yuba College Clear Lake Campus”s Culinary Program. The crew produced 255 dinners, with each steak cooked-to-order. “JJ and his crew cooked 255 steaks in an hour and a half,” Sue Burton, Toney”s mother, said. “That”s incredible.”
Culinary program student participants included Rush Grillet, Roy Barragon, Michael Salisbury and Jennifer Castro. “They played a huge role in the dinner; in fact, we could not have done it without them,” Duane said. “They were a real class act. They came in there and went right to work.”
A highlight of the evening was a live dessert auction. Guests were generous in bidding on homemade pies, cakes, cookies, brownies and other desserts, but it was Jim Burton”s “mistake” that brought in the most money during the auction. Sue Burton said Jim was helping her ice cakes in preparation for the event. She said turned around and her husband had iced the cake with the wrong frosting. The result was a carrot cake with coconut and pecan frosting, which came to be known as the “reverse” cake. The cake sold to several bidders, who in turn, donated the cake back to the auction. When all was said and done, the reverse cake brought in a total of $145.
“The silent auction was also big,” Toney said. “Major purchases were made for Shannon Ridge, High Valley and Brassfield wines. In addition, the Lake County Wine Council donated a large basket full of Wildhurst wine that went for more than $200.”
The evening included a live auction for an Escort Tactical II shotgun, for which the winning bid was put up by Lake County Fire Protection District”s Darrin Flores. Toney said more than $800 in Lake County wine was given away as door prizes as well.
Contact Denise Rockenstein at drockenstein@clearlakeobserver.com or call her directly at 994-6444, ext. 14.
