by Dennis Dalman
news@thenewsleaders.com
For the fifth consecutive year, the “Be a Santa to a Senior” will once again bring comfort to older adults in the greater St. Cloud area who may be feeling a bit isolated during the holiday season.
This month, program coordinators hope to collect gifts for more than 500 local older adults.
It works this way: Shoppers can find a “Be a Santa to a Senior” tree at the Lund’s and Byerly’s store, 2510 W. Division St. in St. Cloud. Ornaments on the tree feature the name and desired gift for an older adult. Shoppers can then buy a requested gift and return it in a gift bag with the ornament attached to Lund’s and Byerly’s. The gifts will then be distributed to the senior adults in the area in time for Christmas.
The ornaments on the tree will be available through Dec. 12.
The gifts requested are not luxury items – rather such as personal comfort items like blankets, toiletries, slippers, postage stamps and so forth.
Be a Santa to a Senior brings is supported by local businesses, nonprofit organizations, retailers, volunteers, and countless other community members. Home Instead is partnering with the St. Cloud Fire Department to assist with gift collection and distribution.
“Be a Santa to a Senior” was started by Home Instead Senior Care. Home Instead is partnering with the St. Cloud Fire Department to assist with gift collection and distribution.
As a franchise network, Home Instead is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Be a Santa to a Senior program. During that time, Be a Santa to a Senior has engaged more than 65,000 volunteers, provided more than 2.2 million gifts and shared the holiday spirit with about 800,000 older adults nationwide.
