SALAMANCA — Thanks to the local Pay It Forward group, volunteers on Saturday distributed food boxes and gifts to friends and neighbors who are down on their luck, making Christmas brighter for many area families.
This year’s program took place at the former Terra Publishing building on North State Street from where qualifying people, who waited in line in their vehicles, picked up their food boxes and presents.
“The place works out well because the volunteers have plenty of space to collect, store and wrap the food and gifts. It’s also an ideal spot for people to pick up their packages,” said Tim Jackson, organizer and owner of the building. “Like last year, everyone drove around the back of the building from where the boxes were loaded. This was all at no cost to the recipients.”
Local firefighters from the Seneca Allegany Territory, Little Valley and Salamanca fire departments delivered the Christmas packages to designated families who were not able to pick them up at the distribution center.
“We delivered to 158 local families with 352 needy children in Salamanca and neighboring communities,” Jackson said. “This year’s numbers increased significantly from 104 local families and 216 children last year.”
Jackson said the 2022 program totaled over $50,000, and this year’s program totaled more. He said, on average, each family received over $ 500 worth of toys, clothing, bedding, household items and a week’s worth of food, including a ham.
Before the event, 13 dedicated volunteers worked for months packaging and boxing food, along with collecting all the presents from the Trees of Hope located at more than 30 local businesses. According to Jackson, the volunteers wrapped a staggering 5,000 gifts that were taken to the homes of the needy by members of the fire departments.
The Pay It Forward group welcomes any volunteers who would like to help out on this humanitarian project, especially people who love to wrap presents. Jackson said they could use much more help next year because the program keeps growing.
Leading up to the event, the group held two food drives on consecutive weekends at Save-A-Lot and Sander’s Parkview. Jackson said the group also handed out 100 free hams worth over $2,000 on Dec. 13 at the city of Salamanca Fire Department.
For more than a decade, the Pay It Forward group has given local families in need a brighter holiday season. The program began in 2011 and, since then, it’s been getting bigger and bigger. Jackson said the campaign is the largest charity Christmas program in the area. It serves Salamanca, Little Valley, Cattaraugus, Great Valley, Kill Buck, Sawmill, Bucktooth, Napoli, Randolph, Steamburg, Limestone, Carrollton and Vandalia.
The Pay It Forward motto says it all, “We can help. We are you.” Jackson said the campaign has grown bigger each year and it’s all because of the generosity of the people of Salamanca and the surrounding area. He asks the community to Pay It Forward to help friends, neighbors and co-workers all year long, not just during the holiday season.
If anyone knows of somebody who needs a helping hand, please give the Pay It Forward group a call at (716) 499-9850, so they can help. All information received will be kept confidential.
