Home Instead delivers gifts in 18th Be a Santa to a Senior operation

Kasmira Smith, The Valdosta Daily Times, Ga.
·3 min read

Dec. 20—VALDOSTA — Home Instead, a senior home care service serving Lowndes, Brooks, Lanier, Cook, Thomas and Colquitt counties, shared the joy of gift giving to older adults in the community who may not have anyone to celebrate with Wednesday morning.

As a franchise network, Home Instead is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Be a Santa to a Senior program. Over that time, Be a Santa to a Senior has engaged more than 65,000 volunteers, provided more than 2.2 million gifts, and shared the holiday spirit with about 800,000 older adults nationwide.

Justin Anderson, a home care consultant at Home Instead, said the Be a Santa to a Senior program has been active since the Valdosta location opened at 2700 N. Oak St. 18 years ago.

"We partner with agencies in the community to provide Christmas gifts to those in need," he said. "It's awesome. It warms your heart and it's the true meaning of Christmas to help someone that is sick or might not otherwise have a Christmas."

The program was not able to operate without the participation from generous shoppers. This year program coordinators' goal was to collect gifts for nearly 100 local older adults.

Home Instead partnered with both Publix Supermarkets located at Perimeter Park and at Baytree, as well as Wild Roots Hair Lounge and Boutique on 105 Woodrow Wilson Drive, to display their Be a Santa to a Senior trees. The ornaments were displayed from Nov. 15 to Dec. 18.

The trees were decorated with ornaments and featured the name and desired gift of older adults residing at either five of the local hospices in the area or recurring residents at Lowndes Associated Ministries to People Inc. (LAMP).

"People were already pulling ornaments before we left the store [to drop off the trees], and within one week 100 ornaments had been pulled," he said. "I just love how the community and partnering agencies came together to make this a special time for the givers and the receivers."

Individuals and children seeking assistance and shelter at LAMP were excited to see Anderson and Home Instead Assistant Service Coordinator Taylor Cannon unloading gifts Wednesday morning.

LAMP Executive Director Yurshema Flanders said seeing the Home Instead contribution shows the true meaning of the season and was a great way to make the residing children's Christmas holiday special.

Cannon added, "It makes your heart happy. It feels good to give back whenever I'm so blessed and being able to give that back is a warm heart feeling."

The Home Instead staff and volunteers shared the holiday spirit with a wrapping party where they prepared the gifts for the recipients.

Anderson said it was important to get children involved in the operation.

A class of third-grade students at W.G. Nunn Elementary School created hand-made holiday cards to pair with the collected gifts.

"It just teaches them a great lesson about Christmas being a time of loving and giving and how that can be rewarding instead of just receiving," Anderson explained.

For more information visit BeaSantatoaSenior.com.