Friday, December 05, 2008
Every angel has a wish
Agencies are scurrying to give gifts to those in need.
ERIC BRADY The Roanoke Times
Virginia Wiegand chooses angels from the Salvation Army Angel Tree at Valley View Mall on Thursday.
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Despite the economic recession, residents are seeking to make Christmas merry for others by buying gifts for children whose names decorate Angel Trees throughout the Roanoke Valley and by helping adults through Santa programs.
Some of these Santa-playing residents also are filling stockings, making cash donations, giving bicycles or food, or wrapping and delivering packages.
Angel Trees are the most prominent programs and have more name tags this year because more people are seeking assistance from places such as the Salvation Army, LOA Area Agency on Aging and the Roanoke Rescue Mission. While the names were snatched quickly from some trees, some contributions of toys, clothing and other gifts have been slow coming in.
At Tanglewood Mall, the Rescue Mission and St. Francis Service Dogs have had to replenish name tags on their Angel Trees since they opened shop in mid-November. Mall marketing director Rebecca Spaid said she thinks the agencies are receiving gifts at a steady pace.
Each agency is responsible for collecting its own donations, but the donations "are definitely not slow," Spaid added.
It's early in the giving season, and the Salvation Army hasn't yet seen as many donations as in the past. The Monday after Thanksgiving normally is the largest day for the organization to receive gifts for the children on its trees, but not this year, said Jonathan Lee, development director for the Salvation Army.
Last Christmas, the Salvation Army provided gifts for 4,734 youngsters; as of Nov. 30, the organization had seen a 12 percent increase in applications for Angel Tree gifts and a slow return on those requests, Lee said.
The Salvation Army expanded the number of Angel Trees this year as it anticipated more residents seeking aid. The army's major Christmas project, the Red Kettles, "is holding its own compared to last year," Lee said. Money from the kettles can be used to buy gifts for kids on the Angel Trees, he said.
"I think more people who are in need are becoming aware of programs to assist them. I definitely think [the economy] is a big part. We are seeing a lot of newly unemployed people," Lee said.
As of Dec. 3, the Salvation Army had received requests for 2,600 family food boxes, up from 2,250 last year, and it is still accepting applications.
"We are concerned. We want every child to have a merry Christmas and we know the community wants that as well, so we are hopeful that the Roanoke Valley will partner with us to make that a reality," Lee said.
This is the first year the Rescue Mission, which also has seen an increase in the numbers of people it serves, has participated in a public Angel Tree program, said Lee Clark, director of development. Instead of putting individual names on trees, the mission put together requests based on items such as toiletries and warm clothing needed for specific age groups and genders.
Although the Rescue Mission has no statistics to measure the response, early donations have been steady and the mission is pleased, Clark said.
The LOA will fulfill Christmas wishes through the "Be a Santa to a Senior" project sponsored by Home Instead Senior Services.
Betsy Head, Home Instead franchise owner for Roanoke and Lynchburg, was collecting gifts at seven trees Wednesday. Now in the fifth year of the project, Home Instead is collecting items for 1,425 seniors in the Roanoke Valley whose names were furnished by LOA and other social services agencies.
"We try to make sure everybody gets a gift from their list," Head said, adding she expects that 10 percent to 15 percent of those who select names will not return gifts.
Seniors were screened for financial need and isolation from family or friends, and the majority had significant financial needs, Head said. Some asked simply for socks and underwear; others requested groceries, firewood or prescriptions.
Home Instead provided gifts to 1,225 seniors last year.
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