By Jim Newell
Review Writer
Mountains of potatoes, columns and canned and dried food, rows of toys on bleachers: A treasure trove of Christmas cheer just waiting to be boxed and dispersed.
The Lake Orion Lions Club held the packing day for their annual Christmas basket program at the CERC building last Friday, benefitting area families in need of assistance this holiday season.
Dave Tucker, program chairman for this year’s Christmas basket drive, said the Lions will help about 230 households this season. “We deliver to families and seniors in the Orion area. Most of our families are referred to us by the Lake Orion Community Schools.”
Each family gets about two weeks’ worth of food, including canned and dry goods, fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, bacon, butter, milk and a Christmas ham, Tucker said.
Besides food, the baskets also could include hats, gloves, scarves and toys and stuffed animals for kids. Christmas baskets – usually 2-3 large boxes – are packed per a families’ needs.
The Lion’s Club, through their various fundraisers, such as their annual Jubilee and Christmas auction, paid for the fresh food, toiletries and gifts, spending between $10,000 – $12,000 each year, Tucker said.
They also had donation boxes in area businesses to collect toys and food, and much of the canned and dry goods for the program comes from school food drives,
Any leftovers after the pack goes to Fish of Lake Orion, or the United Methodist Church to help with their Monday dinners for those in need, Tucker said.
Many students also helped at the event, joining in holiday spirit. Boys from the high school helped unload delivery trucks in the morning as part of their service hours.
Fifth-graders from Blanche Sims joined in the activities to help sort in the morning, and in the afternoon 54 Waldon Middle School National Junior Honor Society students helped unload trucks and sort goods.
On Saturday, the Boy Scouts united with the Lions, forming an assembly line to pack the cold food into the boxes and then loaded up waiting cars with the goods for drivers to deliver to the homes, said Tom Mundy, a 20-year club member and past president in 2000.
Lions Club member Roger Brodeur said besides helping area families, the Christmas basket packing and delivering benefits those who volunteer.
He remembers taking his kids when they were young to deliver boxes of goods to a single mother.
“She was absolutely crying and thanking us. My son and daughter, it really made an impact on them. They still help every year and my son (now a teenager) wants to bring his girlfriend to help this year.”
Brodeur said the club has 86 members now, with new members as young as 22-years-old, to retirees. “We’re growing while other clubs are shrinking and it’s because we keep people busy doing things.”
For more on the Lake Orion Lions Club, visit lakeorionlions.org.