Mike Wolanin | The Republic Firefighters and their families wait to load boxes of gifts into vehicles during Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund gift delivery day at the Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund building in Columbus, Ind., Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023.
About 1,500 gift boxes will be distributed this morning during Delivery Day for the 94th annual Columbus Fireman’s Cheer Fund.
That’s a substantial 26% increase from the 1,189 boxes distributed last year – and 56% more than the 960 delivered in 2022, Cheer Fund organizers said.
Each child is provided with five toys, three stocking stuffers, two books, a board game, and either a stuffed animal or a ball, depending on the age of the child, Cheer Fund co-chairman Ben Noblitt said. He estimates the retail value of each box at between $125 and $150.
Deliveries begin at 8 a.m. at the Cheer Fund headquarters on Verhulst Drive. Due to utility work that has closed a section of Middle Road, drivers are asked to take Poshard Drive east of Middle Road and make the first left onto Grissom Drive. From there, signs will direct drivers to where they need to be.
The increased need for holiday assistance is reflected in more than just the Cheer Fund. As of Thursday, the total number of Bartholomew County children receiving holiday assistance through programs monitored by the Community Action Center totalled 3,300. That’s an increase of 10% more than the 2,989 served last year, according to Alicia Monroe, the center’s executive director.
“Across all programs, we have hit a record as far as I can go back,” Monroe said. “This is a very stressful time for a lot of families.”
Programs whose applicants are screened by Monroe’s agency include the Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund; Toys For Tots; Shop With a Cop; the Community Center of Hope; St. Bartholomew’s Giving Tree and Christmas with a Veteran.
Many families who have asked assistance are working people who are not used to asking for assistance, Monroe said.
“Maybe they are just scraping by, and the holiday is just one more expense they can’t make,” she said.
Despite the Dec. 6 application deadline, Monroe said special circumstances may prompt some holiday charities to bend the rules a bit.
For example, the center received a call from a father this week who knew he had missed the deadline, Monroe said. But the caller explained he had just learned the overtime pay he was told he would receive had been canceled, leaving him unable to buy presents for his kids, Monroe said.
“I’ve also had a couple people call to say they had just lost their job or their husband had lost his job,” Monroe said. “They were planning to start doing their Christmas shopping this week – but now they can’t.”
Another reason for the higher number of recipients are the multiple programs that now serve children up to 18-years-old, as long as they are still in school, she said.
“It’s not fair when their younger siblings have presents to open, but they don’t,” Monroe said. “Teens deserve to be seen, heard and loved like their younger brothers and sisters.”
The inclusion of teens is a key reason why the Cheer Fund had to purchase about 100 more bicycles than last year, Noblitt said. That was made possible by a sizable increase in financial contributions this year that balanced out a drop in toy donations, he said.
While new game consoles are beyond the Cheer Fund’s budget, many teens receive gift cards from Disc Replay that helps them purchase used games and consoles at more affordable prices, the co-chairman said.
For toddlers, ride-on toys have been on many wish lists this year, Noblitt said. In-demand items for grade school students include remote-controlled cars, Legos, Spiderman-related merchandise and Nerf guns, he added.
“Those were the five big items we had to keep,” Noblitt said. “I bet we had to go to the store a half-dozen times to buy em’, just so we would have them on the shelves.”
The Cheer Fund is known as the oldest charity in Bartholomew County that depends solely on public donations to help children and teens in need at Christmas.
There will also be holiday cheer this weekend at the west side Walmart on Merchants Mile. Monroe said 149 children will receive clothes and toys during “Shop With A Cop,” sponsored by the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 89.
Brown County officers will be escorting kids from Nashville and surrounding areas on shopping sprees early this afternoon. “Shop With A Cop” for Bartholomew County children will take place early Sunday afternoon.
What Cheer Fund drivers need to know …
- The replacement of a water main has closed Middle Road, north of Poshard Drive. This will divert volunteer delivery drivers from taking their usual route to the Cheer Fund building. Drivers are instructed to take Poshard Drive a few blocks east of Middle Road, and turn left on Grissom Drive. Signs will be posted to guide motorists to the drive-in entrances of the Cheer Fund building at 2674 Verhulst St.
- Be advised that you might have to wait in line a half-hour to 45 minutes outside the Cheer Fund building before your vehicle is brought inside and loaded. Two sisters, Kali Estep and Alexia Estep, won bragging rights by being first in line last year. They arrived at 5:30 a.m.
- Drivers are encouraged to post photographs on social media to encourage others to come and lend a hand.
- Listen carefully to the instructions given to you by a Cheer Fund representative as your vehicle is being loaded. After you make your deliveries, you are encouraged to return to pick up a second load.
- While Cheer Fund recipients are told when to expect delivery, there are times when nobody answers the door. If that happens, bring the box back to the Cheer Fund headquarters. They will call the family and arrange a time for the gift boxes to be picked up.
Photo provided A map showing volunteers how to access the Cheer Fund headquarters through a construction detour.
Mike Wolanin | The Republic Chuck Luedeman with the help of the Columbus Fire Department delivers gifts for the Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund dressed as Santa in Columbus, Ind., Saturday, Dec. 16, 2023.
