As volunteers with Holiday Food and Gift Basket finalized preparations for this year’s delivery of thousands of gifts, they observed that it’s as meaningful for those making it happen as it is for those receiving.
“I think it’s a gift that goes both ways,” volunteer Valerie Woods said Dec. 7.
Patty Henek, coordinator of the Community of Congregations’ Holiday Food and Gift Basket program — which was started in the 1970s — said the program served more than 2,000 people this year.
Preparation each year begins in August, Henek said. Recipients are referred through churches, schools, Oak Park and River Forest townships and local service organizations, with the majority residing in Oak Park or River Forest. Then the call goes out for sponsors, who are matched with families, adults or seniors in need; sponsors spend about $50 or more per person.
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For a lot of recipients, it’s touching to know “that even total strangers care about their well-being,” Henek said.
Gifts were brought Dec. 2-7 to United Lutheran Church in Oak Park, where they were organized and staged for pickup Dec. 9. Gift bags and wrapped boxes were stuffed inside garbage bags or reusable shopping bags, which filled church pews and overflowed onto folding chairs and floor space.
On Dec. 7, volunteers did the final check-in and attached delivery sheets, so those bringing gifts to recipients’ homes had the right addresses and instructions. Volunteer Jerry Steele of Oak Park said it’s a huge operation and most people don’t realize all the work that goes into it.
Volunteer Mark Schneider of Oak Park, bearing a resemblance to Santa, joked they were reading over lists “and checking them twice.”
A black “X” on a bag’s tag meant it had been checked off, filling the air with the smell of permanent marker. The clicking of staplers as delivery instructions were attached was heard over Christmas songs playing from an iPhone.
Volunteers organized gifts by geographic area — red for southwest Oak Park, pink for southeast Oak Park, etc. — so those delivering gifts could stick to one area of town, Henek said.
“This whole process from start to finish has lots of moving parts,” Henek said.
Working with volunteers who’ve been involved for years lends a familial feel to the program prep, Henek said, “and they know the drill.”
Woods and Mary Jane Welter, both of River Forest, ran the program prior to Henek and remain volunteers who match sponsors with recipients. Welter, who gets emotional when she talks about the program, remembers one recipient who was so thrilled with her gifts, she said “it was the first time in her life she had gotten everything she had asked for.”
The program provides for many people in the community, Welter said, from new mothers to senior citizens “who only want a roll of stamps.”
Volunteers enjoyed sharing stories of memorable gifts. One of Mark Schneider’s favorite past deliveries: a 12-pack of Heineken to an older man who simply requested that beer. This year, Schneider delivered three bikes to one household. Welter recalled an oddly shaped bag with flashing lights inside that turned out to be a hula hoop.
Oak Parker Greg Schrobilgen, who has volunteered for about 10 years, acknowledged that the work they did Dec. 7 was tedious, but it makes delivery day much smoother.
“I started doing it as a way to make the holidays a little more about giving,” he said of volunteering. “I just, every year, like to look at the full church. It’s just amazing how much can fit in a church.”
Nikki and Mark Schneider got involved about 12 years ago, starting as sponsors and then delivering gifts, too. When Nikki lost her job a couple years later, she inquired about volunteering in the HFGB office. Mark soon joined her.
“We’ve seen the whole program from all different aspects,” Nikki Schneider said. “It’s the community helping the community.”
Delivery day, when a steady stream of people come through the church doors, load gifts into cars and bring them to families in need, is heartwarming, Nikki Schneider said. And seeing the bounty of gifts is special, she added, as many people do enjoy having a thoughtful gift to unwrap.
Henek arrived at the church about 7 a.m. Dec. 9, remembering last-minute to-do list items. As others arrived, she asked about road conditions, since snow had fallen overnight and flakes continued to swirl.
When all is said and done for this year’s program, “I’m going to go home and take a nap,” Henek said with a laugh. “It’s basically one crazy week.”
Like clockwork, volunteers tasked with delivering gifts began arriving at about 8 a.m. and quickly began emptying the church.
“I describe this as like a dance routine, where people rush in, zoom around, and then it’s over,” Welter said, smiling as she watched the flurry of volunteers.
Caitlin Mullen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
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