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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Talent workers, residents give gifts to families ... Iraqi visitor loves Ashland ... There's never an off-season to becoming firewise ... Talent workers, residents give gifts to families ... Iraqi visitor loves Ashland ... There's never an off-season to becoming firewise ... YULE TIDINGS Talent workers, residents give gifts to families By Tony Boom For the Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Tony Boom For the Daily Tidings Posted Dec. 23, 2015 @ 5:12 pm By Tony Boom For the Daily Tidings Posted Dec. 23, 2015 @ 5:12 pm » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2324,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> In less than 50 minutes during the lunch hour Tuesday, city staff and Jackson County Fire District 5 personnel wrapped enough gifts to fill 24 recycle bins for six families in the Talent area. “This has probably been one of the fastest. It usually takes about an hour,” said Community Development Department employee Colleen Bradley, who has organized the annual holiday drive to help families for almost 20 years. More than 70 tags that specify needs, whether for toys, clothing or other items, are placed on a tree in the City Hall lobby for residents who wish to help others. Donations were made to match all the tags this year. In addition to gifts, Fire District 5 will deliver items necessary for a traditional Christmas dinner, including turkey, when a firefighter dressed as Santa makes the rounds Thursday on a fire truck. Two fire engines sat outside City Hall Tuesday while their crews tackled the wrapping. The district’s headquarters is in Talent. Employees from public works, police, community development and administration all pitched in. The city’s work room saw up to 15 workers surrounding long worktables to complete the wrapping. At the same time, other workers wrapped gifts in the reception area office, the Community Development Department and a small conference room. Bradley started the effort inside City Hall when Head Start provided her with a list of things needed by two families. District 5 joined the effort five years later. As the public heard about it, people asked to be involved too, resulting in the current arrangement. Up to eight families have been served in a year. Head Start still provides a list of families in need. The list is detailed with kid’s wishes and clothing sizes. Labels on the bins showed recipients would range from a 10-month-old boy to a grandma. Fire Fighter Local 2596 and the district’s volunteer organization each donated $200 for food and gift purchases. This year money left over allowed for purchase off six gift cards, which can be popular with teens, Bradley said. Retired firefighter Cary Halligan was back to help along with his 15-year-old son Johnathan. Halligan has participated most of the years, including a time when the presents and food were delivered by a horse and wagon that belonged to former Talent police chief Dale Kinnan. “It’s a joy handing out the presents to the kids,” said Halligan. After wrapping a gift, firefighter Winston Cote carefully addressed a label with the recipient's name and wrote “Santa” in the "from" space. Some of the gifts could not be wrapped. “The last couple of years a family has gotten bikes for kids,” said Bradley. This year six bikes will be gifted. Bradley and Leslea Heiken worked during their breaks to organize the gifts and wrapping party. Color-coded sheets denoting the families were attached to each bin, with the sheets showing recipient’s first names and ages. Larger bins were filled with wrapping paper, boxes, ribbons and bows, ready for the work crew to grab. Pizza was provided to keep the crew energized. “It’s always fallen on a different shift,” said District 5 Capt. Aaron Bustard, who was wrapping for the first time. He will oversee Thursday’s deliveries. “I’m impressed that the public want to be donors this time of the year,” said Bradley. Tony Boom is an Ashland freelance writer. Reach him at [email protected] By Tony Boom For the Daily Tidings DailyTidings.com By Tony Boom For the Daily Tidings Posted Dec. 23, 2015 @ 5:12 pm » Comment or view comments Terms of Service /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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