Sean C. Morgan
The Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District’s Sharing Tree had exceeded 200 names last week and may reach the 500 mark.
“We’ve been taking in probably 40 to 50 names a day the last couple of days,” Fire Chief Mike Beaver said. That last couple of years, it has had more than 500 names.
“We’re not expecting it, but I think the potential is there with the economy the way it is,” Chief Beaver said.
The names of needy children within the boundaries of School District 55 up to grade six are eligible to be placed on the tree.
Members of the public are asked to take a name from the tree and buy a gift for that child. If persons do not wish to go Christmas shopping for the children named on the tree, persons may drop off new toys and gifts unwrapped at the fire department. They also may donate cash to purchase gifts.
The Sharing Tree will be at the Christmas Bazaar at the Jim Riggs Community Center on Saturday.
“We’ve had a lot of requests this year for coats and clothes,” Chief Beaver said. “It’s not toys. That concerns me. It’s needs more than wants. I think that’s a direct (effect) of the economy.”
The deadline for adding a name to the tree passed on Monday.
“We have to cut it off somewhere,” Chief Beaver said. “We’re asking that people that take tags to purchase a gift, please have them back here no later than Friday, Dec. 12.”
Last year, the department had people start coming in and picking up boxes of gifts for their families instead of delivering. The department is going to try that again.
Families will start receiving phone calls the week of Dec. 15, Chief Beaver said. They will need to bring photo ID to pick up the gift boxes. The department plans to have all of the gifts picked up by Dec. 19.
The Sharing Tree started many years ago when volunteer firefighters started taking in used toys, repairing them and delivering them to needy children, Chief Beaver said. He doesn’t know exactly how long the program has been going, but it was going when he started with the department 18 years ago when the department delivered both toys and food boxes.
“We had the whole upstairs (in the old fire department) full with food and toys,” Chief Beaver said. The Elks Club and churches helped immensely in those days, and the program has carried over since then.
“(The firefighters) like doing it,” Chief Beaver said. “It’s a very worthwhile project.… When you see the smiles, you kind of forget all the work that went into it.”
One of the most rewarding sights are those families that benefited from the Sharing Tree returning after a couple of years to help out other families, Chief Beaver said.
“This thing literally starts in October,” Chief Beaver said. Over the years, it has been tweaked a little to improve efficiency.
Chief Beaver added special recognition for Diane Shank, who coordinates the tree.
“The time and hours that Diane puts into it, and others before her, have really paid off,” Chief Beaver said.