The Whitehall American Legion has "100% of our focus," from a fundraising perspective, on raising enough money to replace its roof, according to Dean Fellows of the Legion.
The roof's shingles have been blowing off the roof when the area gets high winds, and Fellows said most stores don't carry the three-tab shingles that were previously on the roof. The Legion has had to put makeshift shingles on the roof in the meantime, creating an uneven look.
"We stopped doing estimates last year because we didn't have the money to put the roof on," Fellows said.
The last assessment the Legion did on the roof resulted in a projected price tag of about $50,000. The organization hosted a Halloween party Nov. 1, which brought the total funds the Legion has raised for the roof to about half of that mark, Fellows said. He added that a previous fundraiser, the end of summer party the Legion hosted at its Colby Street building, "did really well."
"The Halloween party wasn't as good as what we were hoping, but it was still OK," Fellows said. "There's a lot going on in the area right now. I think the next thing they're doing is a formal New Year's Eve party."
One way or the other, Fellows said, a move will have to be made before the end of next summer, because the roof runs the risk of leaking if not replaced before then, which opens up a host of unpleasant possibilities.
"Once it starts leaking, we'll have other problems," he said.
