A message of thanks for Share-A-Christmas volunteers

Dec. 5, 6:25 p.m.

The Baker Building at Harvest Ridge is filled with volunteers placing items into boxes. The floor is covered with box after box of carefully placed gifts designed to go to the homes of local families who will be the recipients of the goodwill of the community through Holmes County Share-A-Christmas with D-Day — Delivery Day — set for Saturday morning, Dec. 9.

Dec. 5, 6:43 p.m.

Share-A-Christmas Director Bob Porter halts all progress for the evening as the volunteers prepare to shift to placing the multitude of toys into each family’s designated square.

Porter and several other key members of the SAC organization carefully and thoughtfully describe exactly why these volunteers are here doing a good deed.

Porter talks about the inception of SAC and each step of the process, helping all of the volunteers gain a deeper insight into a time of giving that goes far beyond simply placing gifts into boxes.

For Porter, sharing the message of hope and love exhibited through this annual season of giving is an important step in making sure the message of SAC isn’t lost.

“A lot of people volunteer to come in here and help, but they may not realize the entire story of why they are here and how we got to this point,” Porter said. “Many of our volunteers don’t fully understand all of the different stages and the hard work that goes into getting us to the point where our community volunteers can come in and help on this night. It’s important for everyone to understand the significance of what we’re doing, and it is an overwhelming thing to undertake, but because we have so many incredible volunteers from start to finish, we are able to pull off something that we don’t want to do, but we have to do. We’d rather every family didn’t have any needs, but that isn’t reality.”

While the parents receive food and sundry products that would normally cost a fair amount of money to purchase, perhaps the ones who are most touched are the children who are presented with loads of presents, from toys to clothes, including a toy or two that is specifically on their wish list.

In the storage room at the back of the Baker Building is a mountain of toys, thousands of them, a good percentage of them toys that were special requests from each participating child.

Nikki Roach has helmed the Giving Tree project for SAC for 16 years. She has seen firsthand the joy that emanates from these children, some of whom might not get much for Christmas otherwise.

Roach spearheads the important task of setting up giving trees at Jitter’s Café, German Village and Pomerene Hospital. Those trees are decorated with each child’s personal wish list.

She has seen the impact these very special gifts can make on children.

“When you see a child’s face light up, that’s what makes it worth it all,” Roach said.

Years ago when SAC headquarters was at the old fairgrounds, room was limited and the chance of flooding forced a unique spin on storing the gifts.

“There was no room and heat there, and I’d get all of these gifts back, so I ended up storing them in my basement,” Roach said. “That was presents for 400 kids 9 and under, which is around how many we have now.”

Whether it is a foster family with four kids, single parent with two children under 6 or a family with nine children, the presents just keep coming, thanks to donors hoping to make an impact on a child’s life at Christmas.

Individuals pick a child or two from one of the trees. Businesses like Crow Works and church groups like that from Holmesville Church of Christ pick up many of the tags and buy presents.

In addition, Joel and Kristen Yoder, owners of Village Toy Shop in Millersburg, purchase additional gifts, so kids may end up with a multitude of gifts on SAC Delivery Day.

Oftentimes, there are enough toys that Roach can connect with area schools to present gifts to children teachers think would cherish a gift because they are facing a hardship.

How many toys come into the SAC program each year? Roach said it is thousands of gifts, and the community never bats an eye at delivering on the message of giving started more than three decades ago.

“It’s a heartwarming thing to see this happen year after year, and it exemplifies the giving nature of our community here in Holmes County,” Roach said. “And this is only one part of a massive operation that includes so many wonderful people giving their time and money to make sure families are blessed each Christmas.”

Porter said from the moment Share-A-Christmas begins, which he said only half-jokingly is the day after Delivery Day, to the day of delivery when volunteers load packages upon packages into vehicles from the Baker Building and then take a quick detour to pick up the perishable goods at Holmes Fire District #1 before they go pick up a family’s spirits, SAC has been an endearing organization that not only provides for families and especially kids, but also brings the community closer together through volunteerism.

“This entire undertaking is a tribute to the compassion of this community and the care we have for one another,” Porter said. “It truly is a project that comes from the heart of the entire community, and I don’t know of another like it that is this effective. I really think those who volunteer receive every bit as much of a blessing as those who receive the gifts. That is the message I hope to share with our volunteers.”