‘Tis the season for giving in local communities

By: 
Patti Carpenter

Once again, volunteers from the relatively small communities in North Big Horn County have stepped up and gifted big to local families in need.

On Monday, teams of volunteer firefighters from the Lovell and Deaver-Frannie fire departments delivered baskets to grateful families in Lovell, Cowley, Frannie, Deaver and adjacent areas. The Byron Lions Club extended a helping hand and delivered to residents in and around the Byron area.

In a tradition that spans roughly 50 years, 165 to 170 families will be assured of a traditional Christmas holiday meal on their table this season. The food baskets include canned goods collected by the Lovell and Rocky Mountain Elementary School students and staff, with additional contributions from the local chapters of the FFA, along with private donations of food and cash from citizens.

Local fire departments purchased and donated fresh items like milk, eggs, ham and potatoes and sweetened the baskets even further with cookies and candy. According to Assistant Fire Chief Bob Mangus, the need for this program has not decreased over the years. He added that, though donations this year were slightly down from previous years, the firefighters were able to donate to everyone on their list.

Share-a-Stocking

Another program sponsored by North Big Horn Hospital made Christmas wishes come true this year for 187 children from 66 local families. NBHH has sponsored the program called Share-a-Stocking for more than 25 years, a program started by former nurse and hospital board trustee Ruthann Holzer. The program has been coordinated by hospital marketing and foundation coordinator Janet Koritnik for the last 20 years. First Bank of Wyoming staff pitched in this year, gathering gifts for 30 children. The Toys-for-Tots program made a significant contribution, as well.

“This was one of our biggest years,” said Koritnik. “The community really pulled through to make this happen.”

On Sunday, the Lovell Police Department escorted Santa Claus during a special visit to 15 needy children in the Lovell area. During the visit, the children received gifts donated via the Share-a-Stocking program. Gifts that were not delivered by Santa were picked up by parents this week.

The tradition of the police department participating was started by former police chief Dan Laffin. Current chief Roger Haney said he plans to continue the program because it’s a fun activity that gives the children the opportunity to form a positive image of law enforcement.

The Lovell Library hosted a gift giving “angel” tree for senior citizens for the first time this year. The tree is part of an FCCLA project spearheaded by Lovell High School junior Cecilia Collins. As a direct result of her efforts, 71 senior citizens will receive Christmas gifts donated by library patrons this coming weekend.

As another part of the project, Collins raised around $400 for the meal delivery program operated by the North Big Horn Senior Citizens Center in Lovell. The donations will fund approximately 103 meals for needy seniors in the community. With the help of friends, Collins also made 50 fleece blankets that she has already gifted to senior citizens in the community. 

“The community is so great,” said librarian Cathy Collins, who is also Cecilia’s mother. “She really got a lot of help with the project.”

The project goal was to help the community. It was Cecilia’s decision to focus her efforts on helping senior citizens.

Category: