With a speedy response from the community, all 200 families on the annual Adopt-A-Family list have been adopted and then some.
“They went pretty fast,” said Lt. Benjamin Deuel of the Salvation Army. “We had a lot of people that wanted to give without recognition. We were very appreciative of support from the community, and we’re grateful and know that the families will be, too.”
The Adopt-A-Family Christmas program has been sponsored by the Salvation Army and The Greenwood Commonwealth for more than 30 years.
Qualifying families were listed anonymously in the Commonwealth twice a week. Families were adopted for $65 each. The funds assist in providing the low-income families with toys, clothing and food this Christmas.
The list started with 196 families and grew to 200 because of four emergency cases that were added.
The list first appeared in the Commonwealth on Thanksgiving, Nov. 28.
After its initial release, almost half of the families were adopted before the list was published again.
The list ran in the Commonwealth four times before all the families were taken. Because of how fast the families were adopted, several clubs, organizations and people opted to continue the giving by donating gifts to the Salvation Army. As of Friday, 48 additional donations had been received.
The Salvation Army will distribute the gifts to the families from 8:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Volunteers are needed to help with the distribution, Deuel said.
“It’s a lot of fun to bring gifts to the families. It’s a great time to see the joy and excitement on the parents’ faces because they know that there are going to be presents under the Christmas tree for their children. I wish everybody who gave could be there. It’s bringing joy and hope to families. It’s a blessing.”
To volunteer, contact Deuel or his wife, Lt. Wendy Deuel, at 897-5006 or wendy_deuel@uss.salvationarmy.org.
