December 29, 2004

The need is huge, but so are the donations

     Imagine a holiday without a single present. Imagine listening to the excitement of your classmates, knowing that your table will be bare and your stocking empty. Imagine seeing the hopelessness in the eyes of your dejected parents.
     Those are the emotions that inspired a gift-giving program called the Gingerbread Express, conceived 13 years ago by the National Education Association Rhode Island (NEARI) Children’s Fund to ensure that needy children throughout the state experience a joyful holiday season.
    This year, hundreds of Rhode Island teachers and school and public employees – as well as friends of the Fund – stepped up to help more than 2100 students who face every day without proper clothing and other basic necessities. The Fund matched names of these children, one by one, with willing donors. Each child was identified on a gingerbread cutout by a number, along with clothing sizes and a wish list that helped shoppers make the right choices.
      Students in Chariho, North Smithfield, East Providence, Westerly, South Kingstown, Smithfield, Tiverton, North Kingstown, Coventry, Jamestown, Narragansett, Warwick, Burrillville, Davies Career-Technical Center, RI School for the Deaf, Cumberland, Scituate, and Nickerson Community Center (Providence) received gifts through the Gingerbread Express.
     Most gifts are delivered quietly through the front office of each school. In one case, however, they arrived in a tractor-trailer donated by Teamsters Local 251, with real life “gingerbread” cookies as escorts. This special delivery occured December 15 at the William D’Abate School in Providence, where every one of the 425 students receives gifts due to the economic level of the families whose children attend there. There was a school-wide celebration complete with cookies, the reading of “The Tale of the Gingerbread Express,” and lots of elves to pass out the huge parcels of presents.
     Two special guests shared the reading of the story – the national president of NEA, Reg Weaver, and Providence firefighter Tony Estrella. Plenty of other volunteers, including firefighters and police, helped hand out gifts.
     The Ocean State Harley Davidson Owners Group, spearheaded by Linda Giordano, “adopted” 75 of the children at D’Abate, providing them with some of the most sumptuous gift bundles that were unloaded that day. Seven volunteers from the group – two dressed as cookies – helped distribute gifts and treats.
     The cookies made a special appearance in room 313 at the State House Thursday, December 9, 2:00 p.m., to collect gift donations from Senators and their families. The office of Senate President Joseph A. Montalbano organized this project.
     The NEARI Children’s Fund operates not only during the holidays but also throughout the school year. Any member of the education and public employee union may call on the Fund to assist needy students. The Children’s Fund is financed by money raised through payroll deduction, fundraising events, and direct donations. Valerie Staples coordinates the fund for NEA Rhode Island.