The Catskill Chronicle

Graphics provided, photos by Carol Montana

ELDRED, NY (August 25, 2011) – “Lord of the Trout” Lou Monteleone, Manager of the Eldred Preserve and the Corner in Eldred, NY, has announced that he and the Corner Ice Cream Shop in Eldred, will be hosting The Lord of the Trout’s “Conga Against Cancer” and “Human Line of Hope Across America” on Sunday, September 18.

The event will begin at 10:00 a.m. at the four corners in Eldred between the Eldred Preserve and the hamlet of Eldred. Registration for this event is a $10 donation per person to stand in line, and the entire donation will go to benefit the St. Baldrick’s Foundation.

Food will be available for purchase at the event and live entertainment by the SJP Band, Bud Conover, Christopher Benjamin and comedian Ava Levy will continue throughout the afternoon.

The official St. Baldrick’s head shavings will start at 10:00 a.m. where local residents who have raised money for St. Baldrick’s will go bald in solidarity of kids battling cancer. The head shavings will be performed by Sophistications Salon of Liberty, NY.

People can still register to be shavees at this event by signing up at www.stbaldricks.org and typing the word “Conga” in the search field.

The human line of hope will consist of people of all ages holding hands while displaying letters that form either words of encouragement or names of those either lost or battling cancer. People will line up along the streets of Eldred in a show of hope to all cancer patients. Letters can be sponsored for a $10.00 donation. People should make sure they have someone there at the event to wear the   letter(s) they have purchased.

Immediately following the Human Line of Hope, people will remain in line for a special tribute to our troops and veterans where all will be waving small American flags in honor of all those we lost and those who are still serving. People will remain in line for the Conga across America portion of the event where we will create the longest Conga line in Sullivan County and travel close to one mile behind the first ever Conga-Mobile.

Local radio stations WSUL / WVOS will also be broadcasting live and online throughout the day.

Folks from other states are participating in their own Conga across America and Human Line of Hope on this same day and time as the New York event. The states currently involved include: North and South Carolina, Virginia, Illinois, Hawaii, Minnesota, Iowa, Alabama, and Florida. If you are reading this from another state and want to represent your state as well, all it takes is a few letters to spell a name or word, a few people to wear them, and 15 minutes to stand in line on Sept. 18, 2011.

The mission of the St. Baldrick’s Foundation is to raise awareness and funds to cure kids’ cancer by supporting cancer research and fellowships.

Monteleone has been involved with The St. Baldrick’s Foundation for more than six years, and in 2007 even designed a “Bear My Heart” teddy bear with his personalized message, specifically to benefit the children of St. Baldrick’s.

Advanced registration for the Human Line of Hope and Longest Conga Line is recommended. To register for this event, or for more information, please contact “Lord of the Trout” Lou Monteleone at 845-557-3321.