SANTEE – In the mood for “a spot of tea” or “a bit of merry old England?” Or do you just want to get all dressed up for a change?

If so, you might want to visit the High Tea in Santee fund-raiser that will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 9, at Quality Inn & Suites in Santee.

Santee Presbyterian Church member Mary Hewitt said 21 differently themed tables will be set up in the hotel’s Hospitality Room, including traditional English, formal and Western tables as well as a beach table, a tennis table and special tables for children and gentlemen.

Hewitt said all of the tables will be adorned with fresh flowers, real silver and elegant linen tablecloths. A hostess will be stationed at each one to serve the tea, and there will be gentlemen servers from the church to assist.

“A lot of the serving pieces, china, and silver are family heirlooms,” committee member Linda Kay said.

Hewitt said ladies are invited to dress up in their hats, gloves and Sunday best for the event, noting that the gentlemen are welcome to dress up, too.

“Dress up like the old South,” she said. “It will be a lot of fun. It’s a way to introduce the Northerners to the South.”

Featured speaker for the occasion will be Margaret Williams, widow of the late Sen. Marshall Williams of Orangeburg. Kay said Williams is well-known for her involvement in community activities and tells hilarious stories in the Southern tradition.

All proceeds from Saturday’s event will benefit Santee Presbyterian Church.

“The church is small, and we want to keep an ongoing fund for emergencies,” Hewitt said.

Along with the High Tea ceremony, there will be door prizes and a silent auction. Special items for the silent auction include an original painting, a sweetgrass basket, a massage certificate and, of interest to gardeners, some 100 percent cypress mulch.

“In addition to this event being a fund-raiser for our building and maintenance fund, we also see this as an outreach ministry to our area,” Kay said. “We know it’s going to be successful because of the response we’ve gotten so far.”

Tickets for High Tea in Santee are $20 for adults and $10 for children under 12. For more information or to purchase tickets, call Kay at 803-854-4411.

T&D Correspondent Loretta Demko can be reached by e-mail at eeshtenem@yahoo.com. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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