AKRON, Ohio — This year’s annual Sugar Plum Tour of Holiday Homes marks 20 years since the Gay Community Endowment Fund of Akron Community Foundation was established.


What You Need To Know

  • The Sugar Plum Tour of the Gay Community Endowment Fund raises money for programs that have a positive impact on the LGBTQ+ community

  • The tour’s live event is Sunday, Dec. 5 and the virtual tour is the weekend of Dec. 11-12

  • Last year’s Sugar Plum Tour raised more than $100,000 for the fund

  • The Gay Community Endowment Fund has grown to a $2 million endowment and has awarded more than $630,000 for an array of programs

The Sugar Plum Tour opens the doors of festively decorated homes around the city, raising money that enables the philanthropic group to support programs that have a positive impact on the local LGBTQ+ community.

The tour includes a live and a virtual component. The live tour will feature five homes and run from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 5. The virtual tour will feature professionally filmed and narrated tours of eight homes during the weekend of Dec. 11-12. Tickets for both tours can be purchased online.

 

Printed and digital tour guides with maps of the home locations will be available to tourgoers, and the event will comply with recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as state and local regulations for COVID-19, organizers said. More information is available at the Sugar Plum Tour website.

Last year’s Sugar Plum Tour raised more than $100,000 for the fund, which has awarded grants since 2005 to various programs and organizations around the region, organizers said.

The Gay Community Endowment Fund was established by several Akron men who recognized the need for an endowment to support the LGBTQ+ community and also knew many people in the Greater Akron community would support the initiative, organizers said.

With 60 initial donors pledging more than $70,000, the fund has grown to a $2 million endowment and has awarded more than $630,000 in grants for artistic, educational and social-services programs.

Recipients range from programs working to create safer neighborhoods and combat phobias to those supporting mental health and preventing suicide.

The fund also offers scholarships for LGBTQ+ students and allies who live in Summit, Medina, Portage, Stark and Wayne counties.