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GODFREY - Lily and Taylor Freer were honored as the latest “Good Neighbors” at the Godfrey Village Board meeting on Tuesday for their efforts raising funds and spirits in the community with their long-held Christmas In July event.
The annual fundraiser has become a staple in the community since it began 15 years ago, when the Freers started with a lemonade stand, sloppy Joes, and a dream to help those in need. Taylor was only 5 years old at the time, white Lily was only 2.
Just as the event itself has grown over the years, so have the Freers - and so has the amount of money they’ve been able to raise for the Community Christmas initiative, which supports families in need during the holiday season.
“That first year when they started … they raised about $2,500 for the Community Christmas,” Economic Development Director Jim Mager said. “Every year, that has grown and grown and grown.”
The 2024 installment of the sisters’ Christmas In July event saw more than $73,500 raised in total, far surpassing their previous fundraising records of over $57,000 in 2023 and $56,000 in 2022.
“They realized that they were blessed and have made it their mission to make sure that every child in the area has something under the Christmas tree,” Mager said. “Taylor and Lily will tell you that while it may be their idea, they do give the credit to the community.”
He added that “everything from the raffle items to the food is donated” for each year’s event, underscoring the willingness of community members to lend a hand in continually making the fundraiser a success.
Mager said the village is “very proud” of the Freers, who “exemplify the best of what we see in our younger folks.” While Taylor wasn’t in attendance on Tuesday (instead attending school at Baylor University), Lily was at the meeting and will be attending Stanford University starting in January of 2025.
Lily, who is set to study engineering and play soccer at Stanford, is already an Honors Society member and two-time soccer champion. Meanwhile, Taylor is a junior pre-med student at Baylor and a Zeta Phi Beta member currently exploring her exact area of study.
While the Freers have already been presented with their “Good Neighbor” awards and T-shirts, the sisters and their charitable efforts were met with plenty of applause from attendees at Tuesday’s meeting.
A full recording of the Sept. 3, 2024 Village Board meeting is available at the top of this story or on Riverbender.com/video.
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