Perishable food volunteers tackle SAC delivery day
As the toys fly off the shelves of stores into the Baker Building at Harvest Ridge and eventually into the homes of hundreds of children across Holmes County, there is another important part of Holmes County Share-A-Christmas that takes place annually.
During this year’s delivery day that took place Saturday, Dec. 8 at Holmes Fire District #1, a group of volunteers were busy making sure the 221 families on this year’s SAC list had plenty of food to eat.
The volunteer crew there has been together for many years, teaming up with the Fire District #1 crew, and they all understand everything that goes into making sure all of the required food is at the firehouse, boxed and ready to go early Saturday morning on delivery day.
Mindy Campbell has been the chairperson for the perishable food distribution portion of Share-A-Christmas for many years, and she said her job has been made much easier because the many other volunteers know their jobs inside and out.
“We have all perishable foods, so we collect anything that is going to spoil within a week,” Campbell said. “And the people who are here volunteering have such a great sense of helping others in the community. That passion and the fact that we’ve all been doing this for years makes it a fun and worthwhile effort.”
Because the food is perishable, there is somewhat of a premium on time. Unlike the toys, gifts, sundries and canned goods that can be collected well ahead of time, the perishable food is something that can only be collected right before it is sent out. Items like eggs, milk, bread, bologna, butter, ham, potatoes, noodles, apples and other foods make their way from Rodhe’s IGA, courtesy of the Holmes Fire District #1 firefighter and EMS crew, who collect the food the night before delivery day and bring it to the station.
Once there, a host of volunteers separate the various foods and get them put into boxes. Each family on the list receives two large boxes of perishable food.
“We have a really good system now, and because everyone has been doing this for what seems like forever, it only takes us about two hours to put everything where it needs to be, and it all gets boxed up in pretty good time,” Campbell said.
The crew actually has maps outlining where everything is and where it all needs to go.
Campbell said the volunteers enjoy the opportunity to reach out and help others. She said all phases of Share-A-Christmas complete the outreach and make it special.
“We are really blessed as a community to have so many people helping out and taking part in Share-A-Christmas. Everyone helps with a happy heart, and we all enjoy being a part of something this special,” Campbell said.
While delivery day ran like clockwork once again, the crew did have one bit of excitement that added to the morning’s events. About 9 a.m. a call came in to Fire District #1, and the EMS crew jumped into action. Because Share-A-Christmas sets up right outside the garage doors of the station, all SAC activity was put on hold as the volunteers scrambled to move the tables, boxes and the refrigerated box truck that blocked the exit.
Holmes Fire District #1 raced into action, roared out of the station and the activity of dispersing the food went on as though nothing had happened.
“We are always aware of the possibility that if any calls come in, everything out here has to be picked up and moved so they can do their job,” Campbell said. “Then we have to just as quickly get everything back into place because we usually have a line of vehicles waiting to be loaded so they can go deliver to the homes.”
Campbell said it took about one minute to get everything moved and about two minutes to reset the system once the emergency vehicles had left the premises.
Over the years Holmes Fire District #1’s members have been a crucial element to Share-A-Christmas’ perishable food drive. Campbell said the firefighter and EMS members have been awesome and were receptive to the idea of helping from the first time they were asked to do so years ago.
Scott Balder, Holmes Fire District #1 chief, said Share-A-Christmas has been at the station since he started there in 2003. He said initially they set up inside and had vehicles come in the first door and exit through the second door of the station, but SAC grew too large for that, and they have since set up a large u-turn system that has vehicles pull in and pick up items outside the station.
“At one point it was getting so congested we had to change, and I think the biggest advantage was when we stopped having the families come in to pick up the boxes and went with the delivery people,” Balder said. “Delivery people are bringing pick-up trucks and larger SUVs instead of trying to shove everything into a tiny car like we used to do when families picked them up.”
While the SAC commitment does take some time for the department, which includes not just picking up all of the food at Rodhe’s IGA, but also assembling all of the boxes beforehand, Balder said taking part in a community event of this magnitude is one way they can give back to the community that has supported them so well.
“It’s a great help to the people who really need it, but it is also a chance for us to continue to make a connection with the community, which is very important for us because we feel that we do partner with the community,” Balder said.
While the toys under the tree are always a highlight of Share-A-Christmas, it would not be complete without the food and the many hands that make Christmas brighter for so many families.