Show Off Your Holiday Spirit: Deck Your House and Win $100,000 for Rochester Schools

No, that number in the title isn’t a mistake. In her Patch.com article from last night, writer Kristin Bull announced the start of Patch.com’s “Deck the House” contest, the grand prize of which is a $100,000 donation to the winning community’s public schools.

According to the contest’s official site, the contest is open to any residential home located in a Patch.com zip code (a full listing of these zip codes is located on the contest website). Entrants interested in winning their school system an incredibly generous sum of money need only decorate their home, snap a picture of their house at its holiday finest, and follow the directions on the “Deck the House” contest site to submit a photo before December 26. Each Patch.com community will then vote on their favorite home to represent their community. The semi-finalist will then join a pool of winners from each Patch.com community, and a panel of judges will select 24 finalists to be voted on by every Patch.com reader between December 30 and January 8. Besides receiving $500 towards their electric bill, the finalist that receives the most votes will bag their city the grand prize. Be sure to check out the site for full entry details.

Because it’s full of such beautiful homes, there’s no reason that Rochester shouldn’t take home that grand prize! So get out there, and start decorating—and if you have any festive neighbors, let them know about the contest; remember, if one Rochester home wins, then everyone in Rochester wins.

And, in case you have plenty of decorating ambitions, but aren’t the most confident holiday hall-decker, there are several local businesses that offer decorating services or workshops. In another Patch.com article, Jen Anesi gave a list of five different decorating companies that will be more than happy to string some mistletoe up for you. So don’t be a Scrooge or a Grinch this holiday season; use your holiday spirit to give the students of Rochester an awesome funding opportunity.