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Audrey Ulrich loved helping with the annual alternative gift fair in Pasco because it raised money for local charities and provided a way for community members to give back.
This year, one of her favorite causes -- the push for a permanent dog park in the Tri-Cities -- will be among those featured, but Ulrich won't be there to see it. The 34-year-old Richland mom died in a car wreck in October along with her toddler son.
Audrey's husband, Matthew Ulrich, is committed to carrying on her work and plans to be at the event with the biggest fundraiser yet for the dog park. The gift fair is from noon to 4 p.m. Saturday.
"The alternative gift fair really spoke to (Audrey) specifically. She liked that small, local charities had a chance to have a voice," Matthew Ulrich said.
The fair is put on by Community Unitarian Universalist Church. Audrey was involved with the event from its inception, coordinating with area charities to get them signed up.
In 2007, she told the Herald that the gift fair "speaks to the heart of the giving nature of the holidays. People like feeling connected to something and they like doing good in the world."
The event provides people with the chance to buy a different kind of holiday gift. In-stead of picking up sweaters or stocking stuffers, shoppers can make donations to worthy causes in the names of their loved ones.
More than 15 local and international organizations will be represented this year, from Heifer International to Vista Youth Center in Kennewick.
People also will be able to buy bricks for the entrance of the planned Tri-City dog park. The 4-by-8-inch brick pavers are $100 each and can be inscribed with a personal message, Matthew Ulrich said.
They'll be on sale for the first time during the gift fair. People also will be able to make donations to put up a fence at the dog park.
Audrey worked to see a dog park built in the Tri-Cities, and that looks poised to happen. There's already a temporary dog park at Badger Mountain Community Park in Richland, and plans are in the works for a permanent off-leash area there.
It's been suggested that the park be named after Audrey.
She and son Rafael, 2, died from injuries suffered in an October wreck on Interstate 82 near Wapato. The family's SUV went off the road and struck two trees.
Matthew and the couple's other son, Xavier, an infant, also were in the car, along with Audrey's mother. Matthew was hospitalized for his injuries but now is back home in Richland. The others weren't seriously hurt.
Matthew Ulrich said charity work was important to his wife.
She was the daughter of immigrants and spent a lot of time as a girl traveling with her parents to visit relatives in other countries, he said. She saw poverty up close, which gave her a deep sense of empathy and made her want to help others, he said.
Audrey spent time each day on charity work, and Matt often ended up pitching in, he said.
"She was passionate about the things she worked on. Anything she was doing, we were doing," he said. "It would be a crying shame if it stopped or went backwards. It's part of me. It was a part of her, and it's a part of her I can preserve."
Gifts purchased at the fair are tax deductible. The event is at the Unitarian church, 2819 W. Sylvester St.
* On the net: www.communityuu.org
