Letter to the Editor — Community generosity

I am the treasurer for the Civic Club of Oakland. We are currently in the middle of our Warm the Children campaign, something the Civic Club has been involved in for over 20 years. Thanks to an ad published by your newspaper, people send in donations to help purchase warm clothing for Garrett County children. Thanks to teachers in our school system and Head Start program, families are identified to participate in the program.

Members of the Civic Club are responsible for coordinating all the moving parts of this program, going shopping with families and writing thank you notes to donors. Some WTC shoppers are not members of the Club, yet they donate their time to go shopping with families, and we owe them thanks as well.

As treasurer for the club, I collect the donations and deposit them in the bank. I have been doing this for about 3 years. From the beginning, I have been impressed with the generosity of people near and far who contribute to the success of this program. People send checks for any amount, from $10 to over $1,000. Every envelope I open is an affirmation that there are many kind and good people everywhere.

The other day, a friend of mine was helping a family check out at Walmart when a Brinks employee was leaving the customer service area. He handed my friend a $50 bill and said he wanted to help the program. He would not give his name; he just wanted to donate. I doubt the “Brinks Man” will ever read this, but I wanted to offer my thanks for making a difference.

I wish everyone involved in the Warm the Children program a very blessed holiday season.

Jean Tumbarello,

Swanton