SSU staffers turned into generous elves for a local
family they adopted for the holidays. Above is part of
the group who are seen packing presents for the trip to
Salvation Army's Adopt A Family program.
Campus Elves Help Needy Family
Have a Merry Christmas
What started as a small group of campus employees lending a hand through the Salvation Army's Adopt-A-Family program grew to dozens of SSU "elves" as word spread of the family that needed Christmas assistance.
The family consisted of a mom and a dad, each of whom worked full time, with seven children, the youngest being eight months. Two of the kids were a niece and a nephew and one of their sons, an 11 year old, is in the hospital with terminal cancer. The Salvation Army representative said the mom "was at the end of her rope" when she called them for help and that the gifts Sonoma State University employees donated would make their Christmas very happy indeed.
Some of the gifts were clothing and toys for the kids. One "elf" made a quilt for one of the children. Dad got some tools; mom some personal items, but also the basics such as dishes and silverware, which they apparently didn't have or have enough of. A member of the custodial staff who works at the Healdsburg Food Bank arranged for a month's worth of food for the family.
The Adopt-A-Family program helps hundreds of anonymous needy families in Sonoma County each holiday season. Family members make short lists of their needs and the elves go shopping. One "elf" said how much fun it was to pick up items for the family imagining what their faces will look like when they receive them on Christmas morning.
The Sonoma State Elves this year were: Bev Alexander, Steve Anderson, Barry Blackburn, Cathi Cari-Shudde, Mona Chaudhary, Becky Cohen, Lynn Cominsky, Tania Crane, Allen Cunningham, Joanne del Corral, Kristen Daley, Paul Draper, Facilities Management Night custodial Crew, Sue Foley, Frances Hamilton, Stephanie Hunt, Vicki Irey, Susan Kashack, Shawn Kilat, Deb Kindy, Alan Kleinschmidt, Barbara Kohler, Jeanette Koshar, Modesto Llanes, Don Lopez, Shelley & Ben Martin, Ana Munoz, Kamen Nikolov, Eileen O'Brien, Jeremy and So Young Qualls, Chuck Rhodes, Deborah Roberts, Kathleen Rockett, Mary Rogers, Floyd Ross, Meng-Chih Su, Laxmi G. Tewari, Marilyn Thompson, Melissa Vandeveer, Randy & Kathy Vincent, Jean Wasp, Mary Ellen Wilkosz, Ginny Winter and Carmen Works.