ELF NOTE: Barney Snyder of Tucson, Ariz.: “ELF sounds really
great. Congratulations to everyone who participates in whatever
way.”

“Small towns are the greatest, especially when you have a chance
to reflect on the ‘good old days’ after 50 years away or so.

“On my recent visit, I had the opportunity to witness some of
that good old small-town living at a picnic. There were four
generations participating. What a happy bunch this was. This
particular family all stayed in Bradford.

“I remembered going to camps way back in the ’50s with my mom
and dad. We played horseshoes, shot pistols, played catch and ate.
Seemed so simple at the time. Times do change. Maybe less in
Bradford, maybe not.

“I’m sending a check and would encourage those who were born and
raised there, to send a ‘little’ in remembrance of our wonderful
upbringings and other simple memories. …

“Like parking with our girl friends out on the country back
roads, that time we had a beer in Limestone when some of us weren’t
even old enough to drive, going to the sorority dances over the
Christmas holidays, going to Christmas Eve church, sled riding,
Zippo Ski Slope under the lights, going with dad to drive the car
on lease roads when we were 2 to 3 years shy of legal driving
age.

“It is an endless list. It was Bradford and we used to refer to
it as the biggest – or was it toughest – little town on earth. Go
Elfers and God bless you.”

IT’S TONIGHT: The ELF Fund is sponsored by this newspaper. The
Era is the “E” and “L” and “F” stand for Less Fortunate. And the
fund, of course, was established 24 years ago as a way for the
newspaper to help the needy at Christmas. Specifically, we try to
ensure that every child or senior citizen has a gift on Christmas
morning.

One of the fund-raisers for the program is tonight. It’s called
the Festival of the Trees, and is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. at
Bradford Club. The theme this year is “Silver Bells, Christmas Time
in the City” and a variety of holiday items will be up auctioned
off including handcrafted wooden creations, paintings, specialty
trees, holiday wreaths, swags, and lawn ornaments enhanced by local
artists.

This event is sponsored annually by Northwest Savings Bank.