Armed with carts and detailed shopping lists, 11 Cattaraugus County Sheriff deputies took to the aisles of Walmart on a special mission, to deliver Christmas to needy area families.
Since 2012 the Santa Sheriff Fund at the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation has supported the program through the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department.
This year, Santa Sheriff brought Christmas to over 70 children across Cattaraugus County.
Every year the Santa Sheriff Fund makes possible grants to purchase GOACC gift cards that are used to shop for the families. This year, the fund purchased $3,000 in gift cards for the program.
But according to Lieutenant Melanie Churakos, the deputies also used cash from different fundraisers in their shopping, so in total about $5,500 in toys, coats, clothes and other gifts will be under the tree for Cattaraugus County families this year.
For the last few years, she said, School Resource Officers (SROs) have played an important role in the Santa Sheriff mission, as the recipients have been referred to the program through the school to the SROs.
“The SROs have helped with the shopping, which is a big task,” said Churakos. “And the SROs have a connection with the kids, so that really helps.”
When the deputies gathered before their shopping mission, a number of them flashed a smile and the detailed notes that they had made about their families in addition to the wish list provided to them.
Since 2012 the fund has made possible over $62,000 in support for the Santa Sheriff program.
That is a lot of presents under a lot of trees.
Churakos, who has worked with others in the department to lead the program, is proud of the impact the program has had during the holidays over the years, but she is just as excited for the future of the program as it begins a transition to new leadership.
“I am very proud of the participation of the School Resource Officers this year, and I welcome Sergeant Tonya Dry to the leadership role of Santa Sheriff,” she said.
CRCF Executive Director Karen Niemic Buchheit, too, applauded the work of the SRO Santa Sheriffs.
“It is amazing that the deputies take the time out of their busy workload to do such an important community service,” she said. “I can only imagine the smiles on kids’ faces when a patrol car full of presents shows up at their door.”
Donations can be made to the Santa Sheriff Fund at CRCF, 301 North Union St., Suite 203 in Olean or online at cattfoundation.org.
For 25 years, the Cattaraugus Region Community Foundation has been the area’s supportive, responsive and trusted community foundation. Established in 1994, CRCF is growing good by connecting donors to the causes they care about most in the region. Grants from the foundation support many areas, including education, scholarships, health care, the arts, community development, human service, and youth development. To learn more, call (716) 301-CRCF (2723), email [email protected], or visit online at www.cattfoundation.org. CRCF is also on Facebook (facebook.com/cattfoundation) and Twitter (@CattFoundation).
