GORHAM, Maine — On a sunny but brisk Tuesday morning in December, Amy Fitzgerald is doing what she does best: giving back to other people. Stacked in the back of her car are red and green holiday bags, filled with gifts and tissue paper. They're in need of delivery to a population that is often overlooked.
Fitzgerald is a volunteer for the "Be a Santa to a Senior" program through the Home Instead location in Gorham. She found out about the effort a few years ago while working at the local food pantry in Standish. For her, lending a hand just seemed like the natural option.
"If it wasn’t for Home Instead doing the program, none of these people would be able to get these gifts," Fitzgerald said, noting in some cases, these are the only gifts these older Mainers will get for the holidays.
"Be a Santa to a Senior" has been happening in Gorham for about 12 years, currently serving 752 older Mainers in Cumberland County. Every year, tags with a person's name and their wish-list of three items are placed on Christmas trees spread throughout the area. Locals can pick up a tag and buy those items. Volunteers with Home Instead then pack the bags and deliver them.
"My whole family is a part of this process," Fitzgerald said. "My whole family helps me every single year. My daughter helps me pick up the gifts from Home Instead. My son helps me go door to door to fill out every single application and meet every single person."
Fitzgerald said she once experienced need herself and wants to help others who are currently in that situation.
"When you understand what somebody is going through and experiencing, it means more to me—knowing that I’m actually going to make a huge impact by something so special," Fitzgerald said.
Jodi Charron and Dan Perry are a couple who has been buying gifts for "Be a Santa to a Senior" for at least six years. This year, they maxed out their contributions with 22 total bags, each filled with at least two or three items.
"I think we get as much or more out of it than some of the seniors who are getting these gifts. It means a lot for us to be able to do those things," Perry said.
For them, the mission means more than one might expect. They said their Christmases have changed over the years after they lost their parents to cancer, and their four sons moved to different corners of the United States.
"It helps fill sometimes that deeper hole that’s around at the holidays," Charron explained.
For the older Mainers who received gifts on Tuesday, it was clear how much this effort means to them, too.
"This just brings a lot of comfort and joy. It’s a simple thing. It’s not about the gift. It’s about being remembered," older Maine Rita Lovejoy told Fitzgerald as she delivered her gift.
"Oh, yes! If you knew how badly I needed this," older Mainer Sherry Bearer exclaimed, while pulling a fuzzy bathrobe out of her bag.
Charron and Perry said older Mainers typically ask for items they need, like blankets, jackets, lotions, socks, word puzzles, etc. You can find out more about the program here.