‘Elves’ Make Christmas Merry

All through autumn, the Ruff basement is a clutter of boxes, blankets, scraps and doll bodies. Sewing machines line the walls. A large board transforms the pool table into a work space.

It’s Santa’s Workshop, headquarters for Christmas toy distribution at the west end of Shoshone County.

“Christmas is for kids,” declared Cecelia Ruff, who took on the job of “head elf” nine years ago. “Mine grew up. All of a sudden I had nobody to do things for. I started thinking about the need out there, and all the seamstresses we have, with all their bits and pieces. So I decided to meld the two into an old-fashioned sewing bee.”

At that time, a loose-knit association of merchants, churches and service organizations worked together to try to make Christmas brighter for low-income families.

“Gary Temby’s Explorer Scouts distributed toys to the people they knew of. We made a bunch of dolls and stuffed animals that first year,” Ruff said.

After the holidays, Ruff volunteered to inventory the leftovers and assess needs for the coming year. She’s been in charge of the job ever since.

Directing the bustle in the workshop, Ruff starts to sound less like an elf than a CEO.

“How many battery-operated cars do we have? There are a bunch of Yahtzees at Sunnyside Drug we have to pick up. He’s got Legos, too. We need to do an inventory.”

Last year, Santa’s Workshop served more than 225 families with more than 500 kids. Each family receives individual attention. Forms passed out at school allow parents to indicate not only childrens’ ages, but details down to whether a girl has pierced ears, whether a bike has been outgrown, or whether the presence of a VCR in the home would make a video an appropriate gift.

“Each child gets at least one new toy. Each child gets a book. And every child, regardless of age, gets a stuffed warm fuzzy,” Ruff said.

As Christmas nears, the toys are moved to the Washington Water Power auditorium. When a family’s gifts are assembled, the parents are called to come pick them up. Most years, after all the toys are distributed, parents can return to “shop” among the leftovers for any remaining needs.

“We don’t make judgments,” Ruff said. “A family may live in a nice house, but you don’t know if maybe someone is ill, or if Dad just lost his job. If a need is called in, we fill it.”

Ruff can’t say enough in praise of all her helpers.

“Pat McKay over there has already made 100 stuffed animals this year. Vivian Sipila makes quilts for the little ones and washes out the used toys. If they survive the detergent-and-ammonia bath she gives them, a lot of times they come out good as new.”

Other “elves” also help with the sewing, or collect donations and shuttle them to the workshop.

“I have never asked for anything I haven’t gotten,” Ruff said. “All the stuff you see here is donated. Half the time I never know where it comes from.”

Individuals leave used or new toys in drop boxes placed at local businesses, or wrap gifts to put under the Trees of Sharing at Yoke’s in Kellogg or U.S. Bank in Pinehurst.

Businesses sometimes adopt families, donate money or toys to the workshop, or participate in the radiothon that benefits both ends of the Valley. The Sheriff’s Department repairs and donates used bikes.

Because of the community-wide generosity, Ruff won’t hold still for a pat on the back.

“It’s a great thing, sure, but I don’t do it alone,” she said. “I don’t do it alone.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Photos (1 Color)

MEMO: Bekka Rauve is a freelance writer who lives in the Silver Valley. Panhandle Pieces appears every Saturday. The column is shared among several North Idaho writers.