Volunteers putting together gifts for nearly 900 Salvation Army angels
Dec. 15—TUPELO — While gathering the gifts for nearly 900 angels from the Salvation Army's Angel Tree program may seem an arduous task, volunteers say it's a worthwhile effort.
The donations for the angels make their way to the "Toy Warehouse" set up inside Building V at the Tupelo Furniture Market. Angel Tree returns were due Wednesday, and gifts will be distributed next Tuesday.
Thanks in large part to Rhonda Westmoreland, the work is made easier. She helped coordinate getting all the angels' wishes fulfilled.
"It's a team effort in everything we do," she said. "We prep the bags, take the bags and make sure everything is in them to go out. The bags have the items from the people that adopted the child. We have to make sure what's in the bag matches the angel, that it's age-appropriate, that it is the appropriate size and whether it's for male or female. We check it four or five times."
Angel Tree donations are separated by category — for example, books and toys — and placed on tables. Larger items, like bicycles, are grouped together on the floor. Each angel is assigned a number, and a large box with their names and gift requests is provided for them. Volunteers use large bags to fulfill the gift requests as best they can, and after they are checked, the gifts go into another bag, are put back in the box and eventually make their way to the assigned recipients.
Westmoreland has volunteered for nearly 20 years. About eight or nine years ago, she was asked to spearhead the work at the "Toy Warehouse."
"It makes for long days sometimes," she said. "I come in at 8 in the mornings and then I leave at 1 or 2 for my other job. Then on Saturdays, I'll be out here as long as I need to. And this Saturday, it's crunch, and I know I'll probably be here all day."
Salvation Army Captain LeAnna Marion said the work of the volunteers is greatly appreciated. Having spoken to other captains in other areas, she said there has been an increasing number of angels post-pandemic.
"What is different about Tupelo is the greater number of volunteers and a greater amount of community support given," she said. "Every community isn't like that, and it's really amazing for us to come in to hear people tell us, 'Don't worry, the volunteers will come,' and they all show up."
WOMEN'S AUXILIARY
The bulk of the work falls into the capable hands of the Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary. Members work alongside other volunteers in shifts to get all the angels' requests together in time for distribution.
"We started planning for this several months ago," said Auxiliary President Lisa Murphree. "We reached out back in October for anybody who wanted to apply to be an angel. Then our kickoff was Nov. 19 at the mall, and we'll go through Dec. 19. And it takes a small army of volunteers to do this."
The number of angels varies each year, she said, from 700 to more than 1,000.
"It varies depending on the donations we've gotten, how many volunteers we have ... we have some auxiliary members who have aged out and can't help anymore, so we're hurting for additional community volunteers to come and help us," she said.
On Thursday, the auxiliary got some much-needed help with the freshmen and sophomores in the student council at Shannon High School.
Rolanda Parson, and English teacher and the sponsor for the student council, said 22 students wanted to do their part.
"Today, we wanted to do some community service and give back to the community," she said. "And it's about the Christmas spirit, and we thought there was no better way than to help out with the Angel Tree."
The juniors and seniors will return on Tuesday to help with distribution of the gifts.
Murphree said that people interested in helping in the next few days can visit the Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary of Tupelo a Facebook page to find out more about volunteering.
LEAVING A LEGACY
Shirley and Antoinette Freeman have helped with the Angel Tree program for several years through the Women's Auxiliary. The last couple of years, they've concentrated their work with Madalyn's Angels, which raises money specifically for clothing for the Angel Tree children.
Madalyn's Angels is named for Shirley's granddaughter, and Antoinette's daughter, Madalyn Bails, who died of COVID-19 during the pandemic. She had been a longtime volunteer with the Salvation Army.
"Madalyn had been involved with children's charities for years ... she was our youngest member, and this was a special project for her: it was for the Angel Tree babies to all have clothing in their bag," Shirley Freeman said. "She worked real hard at it, and her last year was in 2020, even though we didn't know it. The Salvation Army Women's Auxiliary named Madalyn's Angels for all her work in it, so we try to make sure all the angels have clothing. And this is a legacy we want to continue."
For those children who don't get adopted or fail to have their tags returned with gifts — a number that sometimes reaches 100 or more angels — Westmoreland said the Salvation Army will usually pick up the tab and purchase the gifts. That's why monetary donations from the Red Kettles and other financial assistance is urgently needed.
"We have to make sure every child is adopted and accounted for and brought back," Westmoreland said. "If not that's when we have to become their secret Santa and shop for them."
