GASPORT — The mittens are nondescript, cutouts in red and green, each one marked with one word and one number.
“Girl, 20,” one says. “Boy, 8,” says another. Some are more specific, with requests: “Boy, 4. Board games,” says one.
These mittens can’t be worn, but they’ll still be providing some holiday warmth for needy children throughout the area.
The second annual Holiday Mitten Tree Gift Drive kicked off Tuesday with two ceremonies, each dedicating a tree meant to give people an easy way to buy gifts for needy kids.
At the corner of Gasport Road and Route 31, students from Royalton-Hartland Elementary School gathered to sing Christmas carols and decorate the tree, donated by Becker Farms.
Meanwhile, at Royalton-Hartland Middle School in Middleport, students decorated a similar tree in the lobby and were instructed to ask their parents if they could claim a mitten.
Teacher Lori Nasca said the school has 61 mittens available, each one marked with the gender and age of a child in need.
“We really talked it up in homerooms,” she said. “We have had participation from all grade levels.”
Fifth-grader John Stoddard, 10, said he and his classmates helped cut out the mittens from construction paper and decorate the tree.
“I feel good that we’re helping the needy,” Stoddard said.
The project is sponsored by the Royalton-Hartland Central School District, the Gasport Lions Club and the Absolut Care of Gasport Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
“It’s a tremendous community effort,” said Helen Feron, Absolut Care’s community liaison. “It really brings a sense of community.”
Feron said she’s glad to see the students involved in the project.
“They learn what it’s like to give to individuals that are less fortunate than they are,” she said.
Community members are invited to stop by the tree and grab a mitten, then buy a suitable gift for the child listed.
The gifts should be unwrapped and must be dropped off at Absolut Care, Royalton-Hartland Elementary School or Royalton-Hartland Middle School by Dec. 17.
They will then be wrapped and distributed by the Gasport Lions Club to families in time for the holiday.
Feron said there was a “tremendous success” last year, and she expects to see the same giving spirit in action this year.
“I think that people are going to come forward and do what they can, and I think that’s what’s important,” she said. “It’s not the amount that you get, it’s the fact that you give.”
Contact reporter April Amadon at 439-9222, ext. 6251.
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