Holiday gift program remembers the elderly

The 2007 program delivered gifts to more than 700 area seniors.

STAFF REPORT

BOARDMAN — Home Instead Senior Care is teaming with nonprofit agencies and retailers to sponsor Be a Santa to a Senior, a program that collects, wraps and delivers gifts to lonely or needy seniors in Mahoning, Columbiana and Trumbull counties.

The program kicks off at 10 a.m. Monday when Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams will take the first ornament off the tree at Optiview Vision Center, 6000 Mahoning Ave., Suite 394, Austintown.

Trees will also go up in area stores and businesses Monday.

On Dec. 10, the general public is invited to a community gift-wrapping party from 1 to 7 p.m. at the Holiday Inn in Boardman, and on Dec. 15, gifts will be delivered.

The program delivered more than 2,500 gifts last year to more than 700 needy seniors.

Home Instead has joined with Visiting Nurses Association, Catholic Charities, SCOPE of Warren, Volunteer Services Agency, Guardian Angels, area nursing homes and churches, and Wal-Mart, Super Kmart, Curves for Women and Optiview Vision Centers to provide presents for seniors who otherwise might not receive a gift this holiday season.

“Be a Santa to a Senior each year sets new records in contributions of gifts to a group that often is forgotten during the hectic holiday season,” said Carol Hitchcock, owner of Home Instead. “While children are the beneficiaries of many holiday programs, people often don’t think about the isolated and lonely seniors who need to be remembered as well during this season.”

Participating nonprofit organizations will identify needed and isolated seniors in the community and provide those names to Home Instead. Christmas trees will go up in Wal-Mart on Elm Road in Warren and on South Avenue in Boardman; Super Kmart on state Route 46 in Howland; Curves for Women on Market Street in Boardman and on Boardman-Canfield Road in Canfield; and Optivew Visions in Austintown and Niles. The trees will be decorated with ornaments bearing the first names of seniors and their respective gift requests.

Holiday shoppers can pick up an ornament, buy items on the list and return them unwrapped to the store with the ornament attached.

Home Instead Senior Care — with help from its staff, senior-care business associates, nonprofit workers and others — collects, wraps and distributes the gifts.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the Dec. 10 gift wrapping may call Dottie Johntony at (330) 729-1233. Businesses are encouraged to contact Home Instead about adopting groups of seniors. For tree locations or for more information about the program, go to www.beasantatoasenior.com.