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Kiwanians bring Christmas joy
to burned-out families
By Christy Scott
The Alpine Sun
ALPINE — Members of the local Kiwanis
Club of Alpine helped provide a merry Christmas for many
families who lost their homes in the October Harris Fire,
putting smiles on the faces of nearly 50 children, and spreading
holiday joy.
Last Wednesday, Dec. 19, Peter Horton,
Secretary/Treasurer of the Kiwanis Cal-Nev-Ha Foundation
received a phone call from 36th District California Senator
Dennis Hollingsworth’s office, seeking help with a project to
provide Christmas gifts for 45 local children whose homes were
lost in the Harris Fire. The project had been delegated weeks
ago to a volunteer, but apparently the ball was dropped.
Horton immediately agreed to help, knowing that the
Kiwanis Cal-Nev-Ha Foundation had received donations from all
over the world with requests that the funds be used to help
children. He spent all Thursday and Friday gathering needed
information.
On Friday, Alpine Kiwanian Bob Jackson was asked if he
could take charge of the project on the local level. On Saturday
morning, a presentation was made to the Kiwanis Club of Alpine,
giving the group an overview of the situation and asking if they
could help make it possible for these kids to have a Christmas.
Several members immediately stepped up to the plate,
taking charge of buying gifts for one or more families, wrapping
them, and delivering them to the Jackson home the very same day.
Many personal plans were rescheduled to pull this off.
Along with the needed toys, other members stopped by
with Christmas wrap, honey baked hams, pies, and additional toys
in case any child had been inadvertently left off the list.
On Sunday morning four trucks of Kiwanians pulled out
of Alpine, loaded with presents and bikes, heading to the tent
city at Barrett Junction. The children had been kept away from
the area so that the gifts could be unloaded into a designated
tent in secrecy.
Christmas had special meaning this year for the many
people it took to pull this off, and once again the local
Kiwanians were able to make a positive impact in the surrounding
communities.
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