SALAMANCA — In the spirit of the Christmas season, volunteers from the Pay It Forward campaign on Dec. 18 delivered food baskets and presents to local families in need.
With the assistance of the Salamanca police and fire departments, as well as Santa and Mrs. Claus — portrayed by Bill Porter and Markie Mohr, respectively — the group served approximately 50 families around the city and in the Salamanca area.
Organizers Tim Jackson and Tina Stanczykowski, both of Salamanca, have spurred the community into helping other area residents who are less fortunate and in need of a helping hand, especially this time of year.
Pay It Forward is not an organization or a social service program. It’s a small group of local people and businesses that have taken it upon themselves to give clothing, food and toys to local families that are down on their luck for various reasons and cannot make ends meet. There are also shut-ins and elderly individuals in the community who need extra help.
According to Jackson, the campaign has grown bigger each year. The group fed 16 families the first year, in 2013, and 40 in 2014. Last year, they fed nearly 50 families and this year they provided for more than 50.
Stanczykowski said they don’t just go out and buy toys like trucks and dolls. She gets to know these families and when they are putting these things together, she already knows which kid is getting what because she talks to them. She said when they deliver these presents, it’s not just toys — it’s love.
Jackson said they had a couple of odd requests last year. One was for a bed and a mattress; the other was for a hot water tank, which they fulfilled. This year they had a unique request for a hospital-type baby crib for an autistic child.
“We are still struggling to find the crib,” he said. “This child weighs over 50 pounds and has to wear a helmet all day because he keeps banging his head against the walls. A regular baby crib won’t do and we ask the community’s help in locating a hospital-type baby crib.”
According to Stanczykowski, she was once a recipient of this act of kindness and personally knows that love is what people remember. She can identify with other less fortunate people and told her own story of being down and out.
“Years back, I lost a little boy who was 3 months old and, a year after that, my father died of cancer,” she said. “A couple of years later, my fiancé and I were planning to get married, but he ended up dying in a motorcycle accident. At the time, I had three little girls and was pregnant for my fourth child.”
On her own again, Stanczykowski said she worked at the school in special education as a teacher’s aide. She tried to continue her life but, as time went by, she couldn’t go on.
“I resigned my job, which meant we had no money, not even for food,” she said. “I would lie on the couch and cry. I didn’t think I’d ever get off of it because I just couldn’t do (it) anymore. I’d lost all hope and I didn’t think anybody cared about me. Everything inside of me was gone. Christmas was coming and I couldn’t gather a thought about presents or anything.”
Then something wonderful happened that changed her life. When Christmas arrived, a woman came to her house with enough food to fill the cupboards and garbage bags full of presents for her kids.
“I can’t really tell you what those presents were, but I can tell you it got me off the couch because somebody loved me — somebody cared. It gave me hope and it gave me something to get up for,” she said. “I know her name was Amy, but I never knew her last name. She did this all for me and my kids. It made the difference and it meant everything to me because someone cared, someone loved me … and that’s Christmas.”
Members of the community often tell the Pay It Forward group about local families in need of help. Their attention was once brought to a crippled woman who didn’t get out much and loved to bake, so they took her a variety of baking supplies and pans. Because she loved Pepsi, they took her Pepsi. Stanczykowski said this woman was very lonely and she died that year, but she knows she felt loved that Christmas.
Stanczykowski recalled a particular child from last year’s Christmas campaign. When they delivered some presents to a family who lived downstairs, a little girl called out from the upstairs apartment window and said, “Santa, don’t forget me.” So they took her and her family presents, food, a tree and everything they needed.
“I was trying to find that little girl again this year to see how she was doing and found out social services had taken her from her parents,” she said. “That could have been the last Christmas she was with her parents, good or bad, but that doesn’t mean anything to a little girl. She will always remember that day we brought her gifts, food and a tree.”
According to Jackson, one of the reasons Pay It Forward got started was the gap left in the community when the Salvation Army moved from Salamanca. He said Stanczykowski worked extensively with the organization, so she has been doing this sort of thing for years.
He said the idea of Pay It Forward became a reality in December 2012 when a young Franklinville girl named Tiffany donated her birthday money to less fortunate children in the area.
The community is asked to “Pay It Forward” to help friends, neighbors and co-workers all yearlong, not just during the holiday season. Jackson said most everyone knows of a family that’s down on their luck for various reasons, and who knows these families better than the people in their own community.
The group would like to recognize the sponsoring businesses and organizations that helped out during this campaign, including the entire city of Salamanca. They thank the patrons of the businesses for taking the tags off the trees and buying presents for the children and their families. Thank you to the Salamanca fire and police departments, as well as the Salamanca DPW for their generous monetary donations, and the other people for their monetary donations. Finally, thanks to Salamanca’s “Secret Santa” for his $1,000 dollar donation that allowed the Pay it Forward group to purchase the 100 hams that were given away Dec. 17 at the Salamanca Fire Department (see photos, page A15).
“I am very proud of our city. They have a big heart,” Jackson said. They, the individuals, need a big ‘thank you’ from all of us at Pay-it-Forward.”
Although the boxes and gifts have been delivered, if someone brings a gift in the last minute, they’ll still try to get it delivered by Christmas. If anyone knows of a shut-in or family in need of help, please contact Jackson at 945-2541 or Stanczykowski at 244-8901.
