Local Angel Trees aid individuals in need
By JENNIFER WILSON
News editor
Some ordinary Christmas trees will have big impacts in the lives of Hillsboro children and adults this winter.
They're the Angel Trees, and they're helping out needy families this holiday season. You can find them at the Hillsboro State Bank, Emprise Bank, or Alco.
At Hillsboro State Bank, this is the 13th year the company has hosted an Angel Tree, said Shelley Rooker, coordinator.
The first toys come in after the Marion County Toy Run, which this year was Nov. 2. Those toys will be distributed among Angel Trees in Goessel, Peabody, Marion, and Hillsboro, Rooker said. Distribution date is next Friday, Dec. 13.
But the main emphasis of the tree is the angel tags that will cover its branches.
Here's how it works: A family needing help to buy Christmas presents for their children can fill out an application at the bank, at a school, or at one of the local churches. The workers at Hillsboro State Bank then put up one angel for each child — blue for boys and pink for girls.
On the tag is the child's age and a list of gifts the child would like for a gift. Their name is not on the tag, Rooker said.
As of Monday, 36 tags had been placed on the tree, with 17 already taken.
"It's gone exceptionally well this year," she said. "I imagine the tags will disappear."
Deadline to buy and return gifts to the bank is Wednesday, Dec. 18, because on Dec. 19, local Lions and Leo club members will come in to wrap all the presents.
Emprise Bank is also hosting a tree of its own: the Silver Angel Tree, which is co-sponsored by the Hillsboro Community Medical Center. This tree is unique because it benefits senior citizens only.
Each angel tag will have a number, which corresponds with a local senior citizen, and a list of possible gifts. Names come from various sources, including the area aging agency, the Hillsboro Senior Center, and Grand Oaks Apartments, said Dorothy Decker.
The gifts will be delivered the week of Dec. 16, so gifts should be returned by that day, Decker said. They can be wrapped or unwrapped.
At Alco, the discount store is also hosting a similar Angel Tree.
This is the third year for the tree, said front end group manager Kayla Rader. To get tags for the tree, Rader plans to contact the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitative Services to get the names of local low-income families.
The names of these families' children will then be written on the tags and placed on the tree, along with gift ideas. Probably 20 to 30 names will be on the tree, Rader said, which she just put up Monday.
Participants can wrap the gifts they buy, or they can leave them unwrapped, Rader said. Alco employees would wrap the unwrapped presents.
The exact deadline for the gifts hasn't been determined yet, but Rader estimated that it would be the weekend before Christmas, or Dec. 21.
