Enjoy some pie on the Fourth and help the teddy bears

As Wrangell gears up for another Fourth of July celebration, the local chapter of the international sorority Beta Sigma Phi is preparing for its annual pie sale. The sale will start at 10 a.m. Thursday at the covered patio of Arctic Chiropractic until all pies are sold.

The event is a fundraiser to provide teddy bears for children in trauma conditions like emergency hospitalization, disasters like house fires or boating accidents. The teddy bears help draw people to the event, said Alice Rooney, Beta Sigma Phi secretary.

The main organizers of the sale, the sorority's president Olinda White, vice president Lorraine Kagee, fellow member Joan Benjamin and Rooney, all agree on the perennial bestselling pie: rhubarb. "There's a lot of rhubarb and apple," said Rooney.

"Ninety-nine percent of them are all home-baked," Kagee said. "We try to avoid pies that need refrigeration; we need pies that can be outside."

While sorority members themselves will bake about 8 or 10 pies in total, White said most of the baked goods for the sale are donated by residents. "I think last year we had 75 or 80. We've had years where we had up to 120."

Their supply generally moves quickly during the day. "The last few years we've sold out of pies really early," she added. "Last year ... we had only a couple of pies left by noon."

White said slices as well as whole pies will be offered at this year's sale.

Rooney, White and Benjamin recalled that one of the more notable creations for the event some years ago was the Americana pie, made by Lynne Campbell from a recipe provided in a Better Homes and Gardens article, using blueberries for the stars, and cherries and apples for the red and white stripes.

"It was beautiful," White said, adding that as soon as Campbell brought it to the booth for donation, a customer quickly bought the whole pie.

"It was pretty," said Benjamin.

"One we hardly ever see is mincemeat pie," White said. She remembered it was once done on request.

She said the event had previously been used as a fundraiser for various local organizations like the library and Little League. "We started doing teddy bears about 25 years ago."

From the funds raised, teddy bears are regularly donated to the hospital, fire department and dental clinic. The hospital also offers storage for the excess supply. "About once a year, we go out and replenish their stocks," White said. "That way, they have them when they need them."

According to their official website, Beta Sigma Phi was founded in 1931 for women unable to attend college due to the socioeconomic climate of the time. The organization is nonsectarian and nonpolitical, offering the opportunity for community outreach, cultural enrichment and to develop friendships. It has chapters throughout the United States, Canada, Australia and other countries.

Although White said they provide monthly minutes and regularly report to the sorority's international office on their charitable contributions, "we do our own thing."

Kagee said the pie sale had originally been sponsored since around the 1930s by the town's Civic Club, held in what used to be the fire hall next to Ottesen's Hardware before the store acquired the space. When the Civic Club disbanded in 1983, Beta Sigma Phi took over the event.

White added that once the fire hall space became unavailable, it was held for a few years in the shed next to Stikine Drug before they moved to Arctic Chiropractic, where they've been ever since. "The owner of the building told us we can have that space for as long as we want it."

Pie donations are still welcome, and they can be nine- or 10-inch size, as well as smaller ones for single-serving. They can be dropped off any time after 8 a.m. on the Fourth at the booth.

For more information, contact White at 907-874-3078, Rooney at 907-305-0007 or Benjamin at 907-874-3252.