Photo provided Friends and family of Columbus firefighters work to pack boxes this week that will be delivered Saturday from the Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund.
About 275 more children than last year will receive gift boxes today during the 93rd annual Columbus Firemen’s Cheer Fund’s delivery day.
Volunteers can start picking up the boxes at 8 a.m. at the Cheer Fund headquarters, 2674 Verhulst St. on the east side of the Columbus Air Park.
More than 1,200 Bartholomew County youngsters will be provided gift boxes after the Cheer Fund’s board of directors agreed to raise the age of eligibility to 18 if the recipient is still in high school, Volunteer Action Center Executive Director Alicia Monroe said.
Monroe’s agency handles the Holiday Hotline, which serves as a clearing house to ensure nobody is requesting holiday assistance from more than one charity. The number of children being helped through the Community Center of Hope Angel Tree, Shop With A Cop, Toys for Tots, and the Cheer Fund total about 3,050 children – up by 125 from last year, Monroe said.
Due to the increased demand, the Cheer Fund has been working to ensure there are enough volunteer drivers today, co-chairman Ben Noblitt said. Last year, there were about 125 vehicles that handled the deliveries, including those who accepted multiple rounds of deliveries.
Some of the charity’s most reliable drivers have an unofficial competition regarding who will be first in line. Last year, Mike Jaggers and his daughter, Shannon Krebbs, earned the bragging rights by arriving at 5:30 a.m.
Drivers are being encouraged to post photographs on social media while in line to encourage others to come and lend a hand, Noblitt said.
