Local program delivers holiday spirit to area seniors

Everyone deserves to enjoy the warmth of the holiday season, and this year, Jefferson, Orange and Hardin county seniors who are alone or impoverished will be able to do just that.

Sponsored by the Home Instead Senior Care® office serving Jefferson, Orange and Hardin county, the Be a Santa to a Senior® program provides gifts and companionship for lonely and isolated seniors. The program is made possible by the generous support of area nonprofit organizations, retailers, numerous volunteers and members of the community.

“There are so many seniors, right here in Jefferson, Orange and Hardin counties that have nothing and no one,” said Charles Holder, owner of the local Home Instead Senior Care office. “Through this program, we are able to show them that they are valuable members of our community and that people still care.”

Home Instead Senior Care has partnered with Meals on Wheels, in Orange and Jefferson counties, and many home health and hospice facilites in the Beaumont area to help with the gift collection and distribution.

Participating retail locations will display Be a Santa to a Senior Christmas trees from Nov. 15 to Dec. 21, feature ornaments with seniors’ first names and their gift requests. Holiday shoppers can pick ornaments from the trees, buy the items listed and return them unwrapped (and with the ornament attached) to the store.

Program partners and volunteers will take care of wrapping and distributing the gifts to local seniors who might otherwise spend the holiday alone.

“We have seen, firsthand, how much this program means to local seniors,” said Mr. Holder. “Without it, there would be seniors for whom the holidays would pass without even a visit.”

You can find a Be A Santa To a Senior tree at 75 locations throughout the Golden Triable area. Locations include pharmacies, grocery stores, and hardware stores. For a complete list of locations, please visit BeaSantatoaSenior.com.

For more information about the program, visit BeaSantatoaSenior.com or call 409-892-7494.