Photo by Betty Dahms These young ladies were able to find gifts for everyone on their shopping list at the 5th Annual Kid’s Shopping Day held at the Peace Church on Saturday, December 10.

Best Yet Kids Shopping Day!

Wow, the 5th annual Kids Shopping Day was a huge success. The snowy weather really got everyone into the Christmas spirit. The shoppers were lined up and ready to make out their shopping list for their loved ones long before 9 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10th, at Peace Church.

We are just amazed at how the people in our community support KSD year after year.

It’s become a valued part of our Christmas celebrations.

The Gladbrook American Legion Auxiliary Children & Youth Committee, Karen Pieper, Jeanne Paustian, and Becky Fish chaired the project with help from Gladbrook area churches, organizations, & individuals. Everyone working together created an opportunity for our area children to “shop” this Christmas. With thousands of items donated by the community we were able to create a “Christmas Store” where the kids choose just the “right” gifts for their family without any exchange of money.

Photo by Betty Dahms Each shopper visited with The Ladies of Bethlehem, Diane Mussig, Rose Russell, and Rev. Carol Kress to view a picture of the Nativity and receive a JOY craft ornament as their gift.

More than 180 children waited for their turn to search for the perfect gift to give to 8-10 family members. Multiply number of gifts given by each shopper, times the number of shoppers, and we know close to 1,500 gifts went home to area families. The children came from all around our area Garwin, Marshalltown, Reinbeck, Green Mountain, Melbourne and, of course, many from Gladbrook and Lincoln too. When we asked those out-of-towners

how they knew about our KSD one child said, “Oh, my Grandma told me all about it.” It’s for sure that there was a gift for her grandma in the cloth bag that hung over her arm.

Parents patiently waited for their children in the sanctuary of the church. They enjoyed watching Christmas videos, viewing the beautiful decorations, and coffee.

Volunteers helped the younger children shop. Many of the children were all smiles as they knew they had picked out the perfect gift for their moms, dads, etc. Other volunteers helped the

children wrap their gifts and make out gift tags. Each tag stated “Jesus Loves You”. (A special thank you to Joyce Bern who made over 1400 gift tags) When the shoppers left their”treasures” were ready to be put under the tree.

Photo by Betty Dahms Margaret Thomsen helps a little one shop for that perfect gift for someone on his list at the 5th Annual Kid’s Shopping Day on Saturday, December 10.

Each shopper visited the Ladies of Bethlehem, Rev. Carol Kress, Diane Mussig, and Rose Russell, to view a picture of the nativity and receive a JOY craft ornament as their gift.

An abundance of our good Gladbrook-Lincoln folks contributed in countless ways to this year’s KSD. Individuals, our local churches, and the Legion Auxiliary worked together beautifully to serve the children and families in our area. A very special thank you to everyone that donated items or gave monetary donations for the Christmas Store; the guys that helped get the church ready, the many volunteers that helped set up the store, 50 plus people that helped on shopping day, and the guys that came back to put the church back to normal. The sparkle in the childrens eyes told us they appreciated everything. We needed each and every one of you in order to pull everything together. THANKS so much!

Tired and happy kids left for home with a large bag of gifts for loved ones in their hands, plus a seed, containing the awareness of our loving Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, in their souls.

Many of the items that were left were boxed up and taken to Westbrook Acres, Crayon Corner, and the area schools. The WBA residents shopped for their loved ones. Their gifts were wrapped as well.