Dundee groups make holidays bright for needy kids

Giving cannot only be hard work, but it can be lots of fun.

Dundee area first-responders and Rotarians had a ball by starting the holiday gift sharing season early with buying and giving presents to more than 200 children who live in the Northern Fox Valley.

From the proceeds of their November meat raffle, firefighters from East Dundee bought toy trucks, dolls, and games for 91 children whose families could not afford to buy them for their own children.

Planning and running the raffle took work, but the toil was worth the fun firefighters had buying the toys, said Nick Arneson.

"Ten of us (firefighters) went out and had a blast buying the toys. You can only imagine what it looked like in the store with 10 firefighters, playing with everything they saw," he said.

Arneson is vice president of the East Dundee Volunteer Firefighters' Association. It held the raffle during East Dundee's Turkey Festival and collected $15,000 by selling tickets for people to win hams, steaks and turkeys.

By partnering the Children's Home and Aid Society, the firefighters peeked at the children's Christmas lists, so they knew genders, sizes and ages of the recipients.

"This is the first year we have used the proceeds of our raffle to buy Christmas presents for area children," he said. "It's something we would consider doing again next year."

Usually, the firefighters association spends the proceeds of its fall raffle on equipment the department can't afford. This year, members bought the equipment for a merry Christmas and gave it to needy children.

Their badge-wearing colleagues, Fox Valley police officers, have been doing the same for years. Through the Shop-With-A-Cop Program, the officers will eagerly tell firefighters the fun only gets bigger as the years pass.

Seven law enforcement agencies spent thousands of dollars this year buying gifts for 108 Dundee Township area children and their families. They helped Santa by taking the kids with them on a shopping spree and letting them pick out their own presents.

"Every child who participates receives $100 each to buy presents," said Grizelda Hernandez, a local social worker and secretary for the Shop-With-A-Cop board of trustees. "They also get a free winter coat. Some of the kids spend the money on themselves, and others buy gifts for their family members."

Much of the fun comes from watching the excited children run through the store aisles, knowing they have enough money to buy toys they have been dreaming about for months. Some get teary-eyed when a child uses their money to buy gifts for their parents or brothers and sisters, she said.

"I know the officers have fun being with the kids," Hernandez said. "They also have a good time having lunch with them before the shopping begins."

Officers from East and West Dundee, Carpentersville, Gilberts and Pingree Grove police departments work with the Kane County Sheriff's Department and Illinois State Police to raise thousands of dollar all year for the Christmas shopping spree.

This year, 50 officers took the children shopping on Dec. 5. Plans are already being made for next year's fundraising events, she said.

"We hold this program because we want the children to know there's a person behind the badge who cares for them. We want them to realize we have families too," she said.

Dundee Township Rotary Club members are also experts of having fun while playing Santa. For 11 months of the year, the Rotarians sponsor fundraisers, and in December, they spend what they have collect on presents and a party for local children.

This year, 45 children from Dundee Township munched on pizza and spoke to Santa at the party.

"I get to play Santa," said Rotary Club President Craig Zieleniewski. "That's a lot fun in itself because, being a school principal, I know many of the kids. I know their first names, their parents and their brothers and sisters. They are always so amazed when they think they are talking to Santa who knows them."