Christmas comes early for special-needs kids

By Sean Barron

The youngsters had the opportunity to select up to three gifts from catalogs.

YOUNGSTOWN — Nine-year-old Lillian Rosado was thankful for the toothbrush she received, as well as the main gift she requested: a toy money machine.

The next holiday-related task the Eagle Heights Academy third-grader hopes to accomplish is to sneak downstairs Christmas morning to catch Santa Claus placing gifts under the tree.

For Lillian, as well as more than 100 other area youngsters, Santa Claus came early, making an appearance at Tuesday’s 88th annual Youngstown Lions Club Christmas party for visually impaired and special-needs children and adults. The festivities took place at the Saxon Club, 710 S. Meridian Road.

The 90-minute program brought together about 123 pupils, with various learning disabilities and behavior challenges, from Eagle Heights, the Leonard Kirtz School and the Youngstown city schools. Also on hand were around 20 adult special-needs clients from Goodwill Industries.

As each child’s name was read, someone from the Lions Club distributed a gift to that child. Presents included everything from board games to Pittsburgh Steelers jerseys. Many look forward to the party for months, a few teachers said.

“Kids with behavior, emotional and learning problems love this,” added Cheryll Smith, a substitute special-education teacher at Eagle Heights.

Smith, who began teaching at the South Side school in 1999, noted that a few children have difficulty accepting something being given to them, but that the Christmas party filled them with excitement.

“I look forward to this; I’m as bad as the kids,” Smith added with a chuckle.

The pupils greatly appreciate the efforts toward making the event possible, even though some may have trouble expressing their gratitude, noted Nancy Rocco, an intervention specialist at Eagle Heights who also teaches kindergarten and third grade.

Most or all of the 17 Eagle Heights youngsters understand that they were chosen to attend the event not solely because of their disability, Rocco said.

A few months ago, she continued, the youngsters looked through and selected what they wanted from store catalogs. Each child was able to choose three gifts, each up to $25, said Rocco, who’s been at Eagle Heights 11 years.

The annual event is the Lions Club’s biggest, with a large portion of the estimated $30,000 the club raises each year going toward it, explained Heather Belgin, the club’s second vice president and Christmas party chairwoman.

Belgin said her organization is grateful to be able to brighten the holidays for those in the Mahoning Valley with special needs. Some of the funds raised are used to buy the gifts, she added.

“A lot of kids come back each year,” Belgin said. “It’s important to build good relations with the schools, and the teachers know it makes a difference for their kids.”

The Christmas party also included music by Danger Zone.