How to contribute to the Christmas Stocking Fund
The Christmas Stocking Fund is an annual effort of the Monroe Woman's Club. The club collects money and other donations, and distributes clothes, toys and vouchers for shoes and boots to children in need in the Monroe school district. Families also receive food boxes, complete with ingredients to prepare a holiday meal, delivered before Christmas. Cheer boxes are also delivered to the elderly.
Every year, the Christmas Stocking benefits hundreds of families. Names of families in need are offered confidentially by school officials, counselors and area churches. The effort requires a multitude of volunteers who shop for families, bake cookies and pack and deliver food boxes.
To donate to the Christmas Stocking Fund, send contributions to 901 16th Ave., Monroe, Wis., 53566. All contributions are used locally to fund the program. A pre-addressed envelope is also included inside today's edition of the Times.
By Noah Vernau
nighteditor@themonroetimes.com
MONROE - More than 350 families in need this holiday season will benefit from the Monroe Woman's Club Christmas Stocking Fund, which so far this year has received help from area schools, churches, businesses and more than 500 individual volunteers.
Sue Barrett, Christmas Stocking committee member, has had a perfect view of that generosity since she began helping the program in 2000, knowing as well as anyone that "it takes a lot of people to make it work."
That giving spirit is needed more than ever this year, she said, considering the area now sees its highest ever number of families in need. Barrett said included in those 350-plus families this year are more than 800 children in the Monroe school district who need help.
"I think that because of the economy over the last five years, and a lot uncertainty with incomes, we've seen the increase in need for Christmas Stocking," Barrett said. "Every year our numbers go up with the families and kids we're trying to help, so it's even more important now than when (the project) first started."
Despite the always impressive number of local volunteers who help with everything from shopping to food deliveries, Barrett said donations are down so far in 2013.
"We're really trying to get the word out that we need monetary support, too," Barrett said. "It helps us cover expenses for the boots, the shoes, the toys, the food - everything."
Marilyn Pfarr, the club's president, said although the Christmas Stocking fund has been down this year compared to previous drives, the club is hopeful things will start to pick up in the next two weeks.
One reason for optimism, she said, is how each year Christmas Stocking gets help from families who previously benefited from the project.
"We have several (families) who have turned their lives around and now are shoppers helping out unfortunate families," Pfarr said. "There's a lot of families who tell us they're doing better and don't need the help.
"When they ask to be part of giving to others, that's what really warms your heart the most - to know that you've helped someone and that they're now paying it forward."
Barrett said Monroe schools have helped this year with fundraising, baking, cookie decorating and coat drives, and more than 30 businesses are helping with toy drives.
Each year, the Behring Senior Center provides a large room in which Christmas Stocking organizers can store these donated toys, along with donated coats, hats and mittens. This allows the 300 volunteer shoppers to have a central location where they can select appropriate items for recipients.
Volunteers are sought to help pack food boxes at 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 19 at Dearth Motors and to deliver food boxes to homes that next morning on Friday, Dec. 20.
"To me it's nice to be able to see everybody giving back because Christmas means more when you can give," Barrett said. "And I think we've seen that in our community, they're very generous and want to give to people who need the help this time of year."
"There's more and more people every year who do need help, so we're happy to be there for them," she said.
Barrett said it's nearly impossible to put a number on how many volunteers and businesses participate in the project.
"Monroe as a whole has been very supportive of our program, and they've been there year in and year out. It's everything - it's shopping, it's packing the boxes, it's donating toys, collecting toys - it's just a big community effort.
"Schools, churches, organizations - like the sports teams who come help us with packing of the food boxes: the coaches come, and every kid on the team will come and help to make things go faster. People just want to be there and do it."
To learn more about how you can help the Christmas Stocking Fund, call Barrett at 608-328-4420.
nighteditor@themonroetimes.com
MONROE - More than 350 families in need this holiday season will benefit from the Monroe Woman's Club Christmas Stocking Fund, which so far this year has received help from area schools, churches, businesses and more than 500 individual volunteers.
Sue Barrett, Christmas Stocking committee member, has had a perfect view of that generosity since she began helping the program in 2000, knowing as well as anyone that "it takes a lot of people to make it work."
That giving spirit is needed more than ever this year, she said, considering the area now sees its highest ever number of families in need. Barrett said included in those 350-plus families this year are more than 800 children in the Monroe school district who need help.
"I think that because of the economy over the last five years, and a lot uncertainty with incomes, we've seen the increase in need for Christmas Stocking," Barrett said. "Every year our numbers go up with the families and kids we're trying to help, so it's even more important now than when (the project) first started."
Despite the always impressive number of local volunteers who help with everything from shopping to food deliveries, Barrett said donations are down so far in 2013.
"We're really trying to get the word out that we need monetary support, too," Barrett said. "It helps us cover expenses for the boots, the shoes, the toys, the food - everything."
Marilyn Pfarr, the club's president, said although the Christmas Stocking fund has been down this year compared to previous drives, the club is hopeful things will start to pick up in the next two weeks.
One reason for optimism, she said, is how each year Christmas Stocking gets help from families who previously benefited from the project.
"We have several (families) who have turned their lives around and now are shoppers helping out unfortunate families," Pfarr said. "There's a lot of families who tell us they're doing better and don't need the help.
"When they ask to be part of giving to others, that's what really warms your heart the most - to know that you've helped someone and that they're now paying it forward."
Barrett said Monroe schools have helped this year with fundraising, baking, cookie decorating and coat drives, and more than 30 businesses are helping with toy drives.
Each year, the Behring Senior Center provides a large room in which Christmas Stocking organizers can store these donated toys, along with donated coats, hats and mittens. This allows the 300 volunteer shoppers to have a central location where they can select appropriate items for recipients.
Volunteers are sought to help pack food boxes at 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 19 at Dearth Motors and to deliver food boxes to homes that next morning on Friday, Dec. 20.
"To me it's nice to be able to see everybody giving back because Christmas means more when you can give," Barrett said. "And I think we've seen that in our community, they're very generous and want to give to people who need the help this time of year."
"There's more and more people every year who do need help, so we're happy to be there for them," she said.
Barrett said it's nearly impossible to put a number on how many volunteers and businesses participate in the project.
"Monroe as a whole has been very supportive of our program, and they've been there year in and year out. It's everything - it's shopping, it's packing the boxes, it's donating toys, collecting toys - it's just a big community effort.
"Schools, churches, organizations - like the sports teams who come help us with packing of the food boxes: the coaches come, and every kid on the team will come and help to make things go faster. People just want to be there and do it."
To learn more about how you can help the Christmas Stocking Fund, call Barrett at 608-328-4420.