A VOLUNTEER EFFORT by Bath and Brunswick Elks to ensure that local children in need receive Christmas gifts. Updates written by a Santa Claus Fund volunteer appear in each edition of The Times Record from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve.
I met Opy, who shall remain nameless by his request, when I became a volunteer eight years ago. Opy has a special gift that he calls a hobby. He magically can turn various hardwoods into heirlooms, some of which are on display in museums.
His most celebrated piece was a replica of a P-3 Orion aircraft that he donated to the Navy for permanent display.
This year, Opy donated seven handcrafted wooden train sets to the Santa Claus Fund. He has been very busy this year getting them ready for Christmas. Each train car is made of different types of wood that add color and durability. The engine has four sets of moving wheels, a smoke stack, a headlight, a whistle and an engineer.
If you look closely, you might see the passengers in the window of the club car. Three different freight cars follow the club car. There is a fuel tanker, a natural gas tanker and a box car. The wheels have contrasting colors and roll freely.
No train would be complete without a caboose. It features a stove pipe, vent pipe, and a small landing where you can see the conductor making sure the engineer gets the “all clear” signal.
These toy trains stretch nearly 4.5 feet long. They are all sealed in a polyurethane and can be painted if the parents allow the children to paint them. They are very well made and will last a generation.
Opy has made these trains with one wish in mind. He wants to bring some happiness into a child’s life. His wishes blend well with our mission, which is “to put a smile on a child Christmas Morning.”
I am certain the families will have a lifetime of enjoyment playing with these trains. The Santa Claus Fund wishes to extend a sincere thank you to Opy the Elf for donating his time, skill and money for our kids. Merry Christmas, Opy!
We are winding down to the last two days of getting boxes ready for shipment. We had packed toys for 571 children by noon Wednesday. It looks like we will break through the 600 mark by Friday.
The number of requests exceeds the forecast we prepared in September. As a consequence, we must dip into this year’s fundraising money to purchase additional toys.
Although we are on target to reach our $30,000 goal, it is going to take an additional $5,000 to bring us back to the money needed for next year.
We will not ignore any request that makes it to our mailroom by Friday. The parents have made a request for some assistance, and we will provide their children a good Christmas.
The money we receive is to buy toys for Christmas, and if we need it for this year, so be it. Our staff has discussed this issue and we have unanimously agreed on it. I hope you agree with our decision too.
We had another good day for donations.
We received $50 from Beverley and Harley Douglass in memory of Dale and Sandy Douglass. Judith Johanson sent $35. Margaret E. Dunlap sent 50. Margaret G. Burroughs donated $250.
The Armstrong-Fitzsimmons family contributed $100 in honor of Doris C. Armstrong. Riverwood Properties LLC sent $100. Lou and Ellen Ricciadone donated $100 in memory of Astrid Daggett and Jim Rioux.
F.H. Woodring sent $25. Karen and Lance Fletcher donated $25. Deborah and Douglas Morton sent $100.
Rachel and Merle Gott sent $40 in memory of “those who have gone before us.” Janet and Janet Buck sent $25.
Deborah C. Smith donated $100 in memory of William and Florence Cosette. Elaine S. Jacobs donated $55 in memory “my dad, Hugh McGuigan.” Taylor Rental Co. donated $100, and Debbie and Kevin Johnson donated $50.
Thank you for your kindness and generosity. That makes today’s total $1,205. When we add that to our running total, we are now at $28,888. That is wonderful! Thank you again.
I have a correction to make for Buck and Mikki Gilliam who gave us $100 in memory of “our son, Craig.” We apologize for getting your son’s name incorrectly when we first published your donation.
We met with a member of the Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program on Wednesday. Her name is Pat. I quote from her letter to explain why she dropped by the North Pole Annex: “The Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program, which serves Brunswick, Topsham, Harpswell, Bowdoin, Bowdoinham, Lisbon, Lisbon Falls, and Durham, has a ‘Reaching Elders’ initiative to deliver boxes of food twice a month to elderly people who are homebound for various reasons. Every year in early December, we ask these 34 people for one or two ideas for Christmas gifts they will like. We gave the list to the wonderful people at St. Charles Borromeo Church and they will buy all of them simple things like bathrobes, socks, postage stamps and sweaters.
“Our MCHPP volunteers them wrap them and bring them with the regular box of food that we deliver just before Christmas. This year one person said she didn’t need anything and asked if we could use her share to buy some toys and give them to local children. We are happy to donate them to your toy drive — and would like to note that many of our clients often ‘give back’ in other ways to our organization to help others with need greater than their own.”
This is a wonderful example of people caring for other people. In this case, it is our kids in need. Thank you to that wonderful woman who shared her donation with us. And thank you to Pat and the Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program for dropping off those wonderful books and toys.
If you would like to thank this organization, they are located at 84A Union St., Brunswick. The phone number is 725-2716.
The next item on the agenda is to let our recipients know that they can pick up their boxes between 9 a.m. and noon Tuesday. Recipients who live in Richmond, Dresden and Litchfield can pick up packages at the Richmond Town Office. If you live in Bowdoin or Bowdoinham, your packages can be picked up at the Bowdoinham Town Hall.
Those who live in Bath, North Bath, West Bath, Woolwich, Phippsburg, Popham, Sebasco, Westport Island and Five Islands should collect their packages at the Bath Elks Lodge, 12 Lambard St.
Residents of Brunswick, Topsham, Harpswell, Bailey Island, Orr’s Island, Great Island, Cundy’s Harbor and Durham can pick up packages at the Brunswick Elks Lodge at 179 Park Row. This is a change from previous years. If you read this notice, please pass it on to someone who might not see this notice.
I think you are up-to-date on what’s going on at the North Pole Annex. My next report Friday will bring you the newest totals of children and donations.
Thank you for taking time to read this column. It is always fun to express my thoughts and pass them on to you.
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