Holiday House lights season

Kenosha News, Oct 10, 2007

Carrying son Ryan and thinking of her 5- and 6-year-old kids at home, Tracy Schuster of Kenosha perused the aisles of toys at the old Brookside Care Center on Monday morning.

Though it was her first time participating in the Holiday House program, she was thankful for that little extra help around the holidays.

"It has definitely helped out," she said after picking out a keyboard and Lego set. "It's nice to know someone is there to lend a helping hand when you need it."

More than 4,000 needy kids were registered to receive toys and a Christmas meal this week from Holiday House, according to coordinator Sherri Arnold.

Largely funded by the Goodfellows, a local charitable organization, Holiday House also includes the October Winter Wraps program and the November Thanksgiving meal program. The programs are administered by the Goodwill Industries, Inc., the Shalom Center, Women and Childrens Horizons, and seven other agencies and companies.

This year, 856 families, including 1,699 children, received winter coats. In November, 1,370 families received a Thanksgiving meal as part of the program.

To fund the program, Goodfellows raises money through an annual fundraiser and a direct appeal campaign. In 2007, Goodfellows provided nearly $130,000 of the $235,350 cost of the program. Officials spent about $25,000 this year on Christmas toys, Arnold said, which included dolls, board games, basketballs, and stuffed animals.

Southern Lakes Credit Union, which sponsors a corporate giving tree, also donated 1,100 toys.

Toys were organized into age categories at Brookside and parents, after choosing toys for their children with the help of a volunteer elf, were given candy stocking stuffers and a Christmas meal " complete with ham, apple cobbler and dairy products.

Some participants didn't receive the dairy part of their meal Monday morning since a shipment hadn't come in yet, Arnold said. They were given a voucher to come back later.

Despite a low Winter Wraps attendance, and the usual 85 percent turnout rate, Arnold said Monday morning that they were "doing well this year."

Registration, which began after Labor Day, is now closed, Arnold said, but officials will still give away toys and food to registrants today from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.