Banaszak was thrilled at the generous community response to FYI’s appeals for donations. Additional programs like Shoes for the Shoeless, TruckN4Tykes and Fill the Bus, had all been successful. She wanted to thank everyone who helped and especially the sponsors of the events.
It truly is great seeing the happy faces of hard-working volunteers when things work out according to plan.
One of the oldest churches in the area, Knob Prairie Church in Enon, was the scene of another successful effort on Saturday. Dozens of different types of cookies graced the long table at the annual Cookie Walk. Those attending strolled along the table and filled their container with their own hand chosen variety of homemade Christmas treats. I don’t know how many years this has been going on, but it is a popular event in Enon.
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That is what we are seeing this week before Christmas. Long-planned for events coming off even better than expected.
Saturday evening we had the fun duty of watching our youngest granddaughter Sophia while her Mom was shopping. As her Mom explained, the 4-year-old was not being cooperative in the stores and not playing along with the gift-giving rules. It was quickly obvious that secrecy is not in this kid’s repertoire.
As she got out of the vehicle, she immediately told her Grandpa what items they had just purchased for him. For the sake of surprise gift giving, the little “snitch” was dropped off with us.
That was just fine with us because we now had an excuse to drop in on the Enon-Mad River Township Santa parade and party.
The granddaughter had stubbornly refused photos this week with Santa, and we were convinced that a wildly illuminated fire truck and lots of sugary treats might convince her to pose with the jolly couple.
This year is the first year that Santa and Mrs. Claus went back to the fire house in Enon after parading though the streets of Enon on top of the brightly illuminated fire truck. What a great party our emergency personnel had planned for them.
There, in the middle of the open bay, was the glowing and twinkling fire truck, and lots of kid-friendly activities and crafting managed by the cadets. Christmas cookies and hot cocoa were served along with bags of treats. And Santa and Mrs. Claus sat by a hearth, recovering from their chilly ride on top of the fire truck, and greeting the children. The department even set up cameras to take professional quality photos. It was perfect.
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We tried to capitalize on the magic of it all, but Sophia froze in her tracks as we approached Santa. A smiling Mrs. Claus held out a candy cane, a friendly elf took her by the hand, and even the fire chief tried to escort her up to meet Santa. But no way. All that Christmas magic was no match for the stubbornness of a 4-year-old. Accepting defeat, we settled for photos next to the decorated fire truck.
However, there was one visit to Santa that over shadowed our defeat and made this entire evening a “Win.”
This event marked first return of John Clark Jr. to his firehouse after being badly injured in an accident on I-70 on November 12.
The Mad River Twp./Enon firefighter and medic was with another medic in the ambulance working on a patient when their vehicle was hit by a semi. After surgery and nearly 5 weeks of recuperation, he still has more testing and possibly more surgery ahead of him.
However, Clark has improved enough to bring his family to join his fellow firefighters and medics for the party and some very happy group photos. Chief Tim Wendling also presented Clark with gifts from his department and other departments in the area.
“We really miss him and can’t wait for him to get back,” said Wendling at the presentation.
“I can’t wait to get back,” said Clark in reply.
Clark’s positive progress was indeed a present to the group and the community, and the firehouse was filled with smiles.
As we spend this last busy week before Christmas, enjoy the fruits of your labors; cooking, shopping, and decorating. But don’t forget to take time to enjoy the little things and savor the season.
Let your presence also be a present to those you love, and be careful out there.
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