Donations to Christmas Bureau hit slowdown

Sun., Dec. 13, 2015

By Treva Lind treval@spokesman.com (509) 459-5439

To donate

By mail: Spokesman-Review Christmas Bureau, P.O. Box 516, Spokane, WA 99210.

Online: www.spokesman.com/christmasfund. Online donations can be made with a PayPal account or credit card.

In person: Deliver your donation to the guard in the lobby of the S-R offices in Spokane at 999 W. Riverside Ave. or in Coeur d’Alene at 608 Northwest Blvd.

If you go

Where: Spokane County Fair and Expo Center, 404 N. Havana St.

When: Daily, Monday through Saturday.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

ID requirements: Each adult and child who receives holiday support from the Christmas Bureau must meet identification requirements. Income is not verified.

Adults must bring photo ID for themselves and every person older than 18 living in the household. Additionally, each adult must show proof of address, such as a current utility bill, phone bill or rent receipt listing their name and current physical address. (P.O. boxes are not accepted.)

For children, bring a document from a school, day care center or social service agency verifying each child’s name, address and date of birth. WIC folders are accepted as ID for children. Social Security cards are not valid identification.

No animals: Animals are prohibited except for service dogs. Please leave pets at home.

Each day’s mail delivers promises of Christmas giving for more than 9,000 needy families, but last week’s regional U.S. Postal Service delays have slowed a usually steady stream of donations to the Christmas Bureau.

Incoming mail slowed considerably Wednesday and Thursday, likely part of widespread regional mail delays following recent damage at a Postal Service mail storage facility at Spokane International Airport.

As the countdown narrows to 10 days until Christmas, the bureau still needs more than $372,500 to reach a goal of $525,000. The charity distributes books, toys and food vouchers to about 9,000 needy families as a 70-year Spokane tradition.

Bureau coordinator Judy Lee said more than 400 volunteers are keeping the operations running well, with the second day drawing more crowds than the first. Still, people are moving through quickly.

Adults can select books for children up to age 14 plus an assortment of toys or gifts for children up to 17.

“Things are running very smoothly,” Lee said. “In the first two days, we were seeing slightly more families than we did last year.”

Leticia Gonzalez, a Cheney resident, was one of those early recipients. She came to find gifts for her 4-year-old daughter and 8-year-old son. Her income is stretched this season as she takes classes at Eastern Washington University in criminal justice.

“Christmastime is a little tight for us, so I’m here,” she said. “And we’re expecting another child.”

On the bureau’s first two days, more than 2,300 households were served, Lee said. Toys were given for more than 4,600 children.

Organized by Catholic Charities, Volunteers of America and The Spokesman-Review, the event distributes books, toys and food vouchers for families in need. It ends Saturday.

About 96 percent of the funds raised pays for those books, toys and food vouchers during the nine days the bureau is open. The large number of volunteers keeps overhead costs low.

Recent donations

Jeff Ellingson, of Liberty Lake, gave $100 via PayPal.

Cindy Jonz, of Liberty Lake, gave $100 via PayPal.

Daunita Higgins, of Newport, Wash., donated $100 via PayPal.

Bill Molsberry, of Spokane, gave $100 via PayPal.

Susan Pelton, of Spokane, gave $50 via PayPal.

Olivia Wiseman, of Liberty Lake, gave $25 via Jon Wiseman and PayPal with the note, “from Olivia Wiseman, 6th grader at Greenacres Middle School.”

Note: For donations made through PayPal, The Spokesman-Review contributed the PayPal processing fee.