Christmas continued for an extra day last week for several youngsters in the Westfield community and their families as volunteers and members of the Westfield Volunteer Fire Department delivered toys and meals.
The delivery was the culmination of a month-long collaborative effort between the fire department, Westfield’s Family Dollar Store and the Westfield Baptist Church. Originally scheduled for Christmas Eve, deliveries were delayed until Saturday due to Thursday’s heavy rains.
According to firefighters, children in several neighborhoods were eagerly anticipating the flashing lights of fire trucks, signaling the arrival of gifts. Excited youngsters accompanied by family members crowded around to greet volunteers and to express their appreciation.
In addition to firefighters, volunteers from Westfield Baptist Church and some students from local high schools took part in the delivery.
“As an example,” WVFD Chief Jonathan Sutphin noted, “we had one little girl who’d gotten a fire department hat and dress during a past distribution. This year, she was wearing it when she greeted us. Everybody including us, the families and the children receiving the toys enjoys this.”
Now in its fifth year, the project has consistently grown in scope and outreach. This year’s deliveries featured a bountiful supply of toys donated by the community with Family Dollar Store serving as the primary drop site. Monetary donations were used to purchase hygiene bags filled with practical essentials that were distributed as long as supplies lasted. Westfield Baptist Church provided 75 hams that were combined with bags of non-perishable food items and disposable utensils and distributed in the form of holiday meal bags. Other items distributed included book bags and blankets. An estimated 100 children received toys during the day.
“This was probably the most items we’d ever had,” noted WVFD Board President Jordan Smith. “It was great as that allowed us to go to more places.”
“Donations have probably tripled since the first year we did this,” agreed Sutphin. “With everything that has happened this year and all that people have gone through, it was a blessing to see the community response.”
“We may get a bigger blessing from doing this than they do,” Smith said. “To be able to give back and to see the joy on kids’ faces, it gives you a real perspective on how blessed we are. I really enjoy the day and as a department, we’d love to be able to take this further and continue to do more.”
Source: https://www.mtairynews.com