Making Sure Every Kid Has A Merry Christmas

Mahaska County Posse member Tim Shannon was one of the many volunteers who helped to fill the Christmas present list of needy Mahaska County youth.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The back office at the Oskaloosa Police Department was packed with presents for little girls and boys from the Mahaska County area.

Those youngsters were selected with the help of SEIDA, based upon income qualifications.

That list of young people, and their needs and wants, were then transferred to paper mittens and placed upon the giving trees that were found throughout the community.

Oskaloosa Police Lieutenant Troy Boston, who helps to lead up the effort, said that 264 kids will have a merrier Christmas this year due to the generosity of individuals who took one of those mittens and purchased presents for a stranger.

The largest number of kids that needed Christmas presents happened about four years ago when 340 kids were helped.

Not every mitten found somebody, so the Oskaloosa Police Department Association stepped in, along with the help of many community members, to fill the remaining orders.

Funds for the purchase of those Christmas gifts comes through fundraisers like the police calendar and community support, the Mahaska County Posse, the Oskaloosa Fire Department, The Lions Club, Clemon’s Dealership, and other private donors.

“The nice thing about the program, it’s a community involved program. It’s not just us,” explained Boston. “We basically facilitate it and we take donations throughout the year from individuals that want to participate in it.”

“If we don’t have community participation, we can’t do it,” added Boston.

Boston specifically thanked Mahaska Drug for hosting the largest ‘Giving Tree’ and “they take on a bunch of kids to give presents to.”

This year, it took nearly two-and-a-half hours to complete the shopping for approximately 100 kids. Mahaska County Sheriff’s Posse, Lion’s Club members, Firefighters, and Oskaloosa Police Officers diligently worked on filling every last request they could.

All of the gifts were then transported back to the Oskaloosa Police Department and were prepared for parental pickup.

Boston wanted to thank everybody that participated in helping to make this possible.

Tim Shannon is a Mahaska County Posse member and was one of the volunteers out shopping to fill the wishes on the mittens.

For the Mahaska County Posse, donating funds to the gift program is something they find a high priority. “That’s something that the Posse likes to do, is spend their money on the youth of Mahaska County,” added Shannon. “When we make our donations, that’s usually the first priority.”

“When Troy came to us and wanted money, it was a natural fit,” added Shannon.

The Mahaska County Posse is an aide for the Mahaska County Sheriff’s Office. The Posse helps with patrol duties, security for community functions, and donating their time for charitable events like the Christmas present shopping.

Oskaloosa Police Officer Nick Landgrebe was one of the Oskaloosa Police officers spending time shopping for the local youth.

He said that spending the time shopping for the project makes him feel good. “I’ve come out here the last four years I’ve been here. It feels pretty great that we can come out here in the community and help the kids, and help the people that can’t afford presents for their kids.”

To learn more about the program, or to donate to the program, you can contact Lt. Troy Boston at the Oskaloosa Police Department (641) 673-3201