Share-A-Christmas celebrates 38 years of blessings
More than halfway through emptying out the Baker Building on Dec. 14, volunteers turned out en mass to help make sure Share-A-Christmas Delivery Day went according to plan.
Another year, another inspiring season of giving through Holmes County Share-A-Christmas.
On Saturday, Dec. 14 at the Baker Building at Harvest Ridge, months of planning and execution paid off as boxes of gifts were escorted out of the building to family homes throughout Holmes County.
Over 250 families had their Christmas season brightened by the giving of the community and the dedication of volunteers who make Share-A-Christmas such a wonderful undertaking.
For Mike Taylor, who along with Bill Baker, John Thern and Sam Steimel created SAC by brightening the lives of just eight families in that first SAC Christmas 37 years ago, watching the Baker Building come alive with the hum of glad tidings, compassion and a heart for serving was its own reward.
While SAC began at the former fairgrounds, things really took off when Baker donated the funds to build the Baker Building, which serves as the hub of the organization.
“Bill was such a driving force for this,” Taylor said. “After we did those first eight families, he said, ‘Let’s do 100 families next year.’ It just took off from there.”
While there is no official count, the past 38 years have seen SAC touch the lives of what is approaching 10,000 families during that span.
With an estimated 750-1,000 children being part of the undertaking each year, the number of children blessed by this event over nearly 40 years is probably close to 30,000.
Add on the countless seniors who are part of the season of giving and SAC has had an unfathomable influence on Holmes County.
“Almost all of those people we have connected with over the years are so grateful,” Taylor said.
The morning saw numerous vehicles circling the Baker Building to pick up a bevy of Christmas gifts for area families, then hit the road to make their special deliveries, only to return and do it all over again.
Liz Findley and Katrina Mathie have been delivering SAC presents for more than a decade, and they said they look forward to this joyful occasion every year.
“It’s something very important to us,” Findley said. “It’s a special day for us and for many others. Everyone is so nice, and to see the appreciation in the families and especially the smiles on the children’s faces make this a very rewarding day. We wouldn’t miss this for the world, and we’ll mark our calendars tomorrow for next year’s event.”
Taylor said one of the most gratifying experiences he and many others have witnessed over the years is watching families who have been on the receiving end of SAC gaining ground and finding financial stability, only to return the favor and volunteer to help others just like they were blessed years prior.
“Whether it is through donations or coming to help, it’s gratifying to see families want to give back who have experienced the receiving part of it,” Taylor said.
For something of this magnitude to take place, it takes a special community of people who share a compassion and giving spirit.
Taylor said not one of the members of the SAC Committee will ever take for granted the giving spirit of this community.
“To have the kind of donations we receive from individuals, churches, schools and businesses and to raise the kind of money we are able to raise is different,” Taylor said. “I would be shocked if it exists any place else.”
He said he met people from Columbus who came in and witnessed the effort, and they said it was unbelievable, that they had never seen anything like it.
“Holmes County is a special place,” Taylor said. “And we continue to see a transition to the next generation because they have seen the amazing impact Share-A-Christmas has had on the people of this community, whether they are giving or receiving. I hope it carries on for generations because this project is bigger than any one individual.”