Editor:
Every year the Rotary Club of Edmonds provides gift giving trees to support the Snohomish County CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocates for Children) and the Volunteer Guardian ad Litem Programs (VGAL). These programs provide court-appointed special advocates for children who are victims or alleged victims of sexual abuse, physical abuse, or neglect. This year, we had a herculean 285 requests to fulfill. Miraculously, we filled all requests!
With COVID, our main tree always situated at Harbor Square Athletic Club, but since it was in lockdown, we had to rely on many new elves to help us: Chris Dufore and Jesse LaCasse and their crew and patrons of Gallaghers’ Where U-Brew; Dick Mergens and Shawn Dowling and their crew and patrons of Crucible Brewing in Everett; David Doane and his pharmaceutical crew and clients of Axis Pharmacy of Mountlake Terrace, and my fellow Rotarians, who greeted patrons at the Perrinville Sunday Market, where Rotary had a small tree and had huge success with this program. We are well aware that many individuals took many mittens to fulfill all these requests.
Special thanks to: Sharalyn Ramm and Gary Burnett, who became a virtual gift-giving tree and handed out 44 mittens; generous Santas Armando Ortiz and Maji Stiffler who took more than 10 mittens apiece and gave fascinating and magical gifts; “COVID” lockdown Santas Lorri Mietzner, Pat Thorpe and Karen Wiggens, who donated more than $3,000 collectively, allowing us to buy warm coats and clothes, toys, dollies, electronics, art supplies and STEM items and more; “secret” Santa Sandra Ferguson and her two special elves Selah and Zoe An, who donated over 50 educational gifts, Frozen, Barbie and LOL dolls, and games and toys for varying age groups.
The generosity of everyone was overwhelming – proving that “we are all in this together.” Those 285 kids probably will have glee on their faces and warmth in their hearts on Christmas Day. Everyone should feel delight in their hearts as once again, another successful year of giving – the year of the pandemic 2020.
Happy Holidays!
Santa Jim Welsh, Santa’s helpers Diane Buckshnis, Sharalyn Ramm, Maggie Peterson, Carol Kinney, Brent Hagen, Libby Freese, CASA elves Joelle Kelly, Lindsay Cortes and all their elves
For more information about CASA, visit snohomishcountywa.gov/881/CASA-Program
For more information about Edmonds Rotary, visit www.edmondsrotary.com/
THANK YOU and congratulations to all the Rotarians who participated in this wonderful effort to get gifts to so many children.
Thanks to Scott and Sheryl Ramm who did an on line giving tree of 22 mittens. They were all taken and returned. And with help from many of our Daphnes friends, Gary and I were able to collect another 35 gifts for the CASA VGAL program. We all tried especially hard to fill all the requests in each mitten, I personally loved finding and buying an American Indian and a black American Girl doll with extras. Gary liked buying the lovely wooden art supplies boxes at Costco and the sketch pads and canvas to go with them. Andrew and Carlo loved finding and buying the red flyer for a six year old boy.
We all love this program as it lets us experience the real meaning of Christmas generosity.