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http://www.omniture.com --> Sections Home Page Local News AP News AP Entertainment Archives Business Classifieds Event Calendar Forums Life Opinion Obituaries Photo Gallery Readers Photo Gallery Sports Tempo Weather Special Coverage 2006 Britt Festivals --> Shop Our Valley AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Search Our Valley Special Sections Distinctly Northwest Readers' Choice Homelife Magazine Joy Magazine Holiday Guide Oregon Golf Info Oregon Wine Info Other Publications Local Links Ashland News eSouthernOregon Newspapers In Education Personals Moving Here Movie Listings TV Listings Volunteer Customer Service Advertise With Us Media Kit Place Classified Ad Contact Us FAQ's Home Delivery Site Map --> Email Story to a Friend December 25, 2006 Amanda Sims received a new gas stove to replace her leaky, dilapidated range after her story was featured in the Mail Tribune's Light One Candle series. (Mail Tribune / Jim Craven) One candle at a time Annual holiday campaign generates goodwill, gifts and a feeling of hope By SARAH LEMON Mail Tribune Formerly reliant on a microwave and Crock-Pot, Amanda Sims' family will have cookies and roast ham for Christmas. A brand-new Frigidaire range has replaced the dilapidated model that filled Sims' west Medford trailer home with the stench of natural gas. The sparkling, black and white stove arrived just a week after Sims' story appeared in the Mail Tribune, kicking off its 10th annual "Light One Candle" holiday campaign. Alarmed that Sims' 3-year-old and 9-month-old daughters were living amidst a fire and respiratory hazard, public health nurses contacted the newspaper. "It's just been a big blessing," said Sims, 24. "I want to say thank you so much." Dozens of readers offered to replace Sims' range, which was too costly for the single mother who works part-time cleaning Ashland motel rooms. A private donor allowed Sims to pick out the $400 appliance, which arrived a week later at her residence. Avista Utilities removed the old stove and capped off gas lines for free, Sims said. "They just said I should have called," Sims said. Advertisement The stove's slow leak had sent Sims' gas bill soaring. Her service was on the brink of being shut off before a local physician offered to pay the $300 charge. Mail Tribune readers also sent in clothes for Sims' daughters and several hundred dollars in cash. The community's generosity will not only help nourish the family but will tide them over until Ashland's tourist season picks up in February, bringing Sims more work. "It will be a merry Christmas," she said. Baby supplies weren't the only boon for a single mother whose infant son survived a serious birth defect. Vanessa Mathiasen, 22, gained a support group, of sorts, after the newspaper related her son Cayden's extensive treatment for a congenital diaphragmatic hernia. One donor had herself been profiled in 2005's "Light One Candle" series. Another woman, whose own son suffered the same defect, wrote Mathiasen a note and included her phone number. "Finding a person who went through the same thing is nice," Mathiasen said. "I didn't feel like I was alone anymore." Newspaper readers' sent Mathiasen baby clothes, a high chair, bouncy chair and enough Pac-N-Play portable playpens that La Clinica de Valle could share them with other clients, said Donna King, advocate for the nonprofit clinic's Healthy Start program. The Jackson County Sheriff's Department also gave Cayden a new child car safety seat. Unable to save enough money working two part-time jobs to move from her mother's White City home, Mathiasen also received about $700 in cash, which she is setting aside for a rental deposit. She also received leads on scholarship opportunities to obtain her license as a certified nursing assistant, King said. A homeless family of seven will spend the holidays in a Medford motel. But newspaper readers turned their plight into "Christmas almost every day." The 22-year-old son of Shari Basett, 43, now has enough work clothes to keep providing for the family. "All his life, he's been the one who didn't have much," Basett said. Her other children have new shoes, snow boots, jackets and other clothing — enough to share with other families they met at St. Vincent de Paul's homeless shelter. Basett, who suffers from foot pain, said she now has a slightly used pair of Birkenstocks that seem made for her. The family also has $250 to put toward housing deposits. "I'd kind of lost my faith," Basett said. "It's been so uplifting." There were other highlights, as well: An 18-year-old girl living on her own since "aging out" of the foster-care system received enough gift cards and cash donations to sustain her for several months and, perhaps, all year, said Lené Garrett, program administrator for Court-Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Jackson County. The support will help the girl complete her education free from the stress of stretching a very meager income, Garrett said. A Medford couple in their 50s trying to raise eight grandchildren — while facing medical disability — have bedding, dishes, rugs and a vacuum cleaner. The children will have bicycles, a dollhouse and clothing for Christmas, said Tammy De Jong, of the Salvation Army's Medford Citadel. Several victims of domestic violence staying with their children in a local shelter received household goods, toys and enough additional funds to pay for the kids' school expenses or utility bills once the families find housing, said Gerry Sea, program manager for Community Work's Dunn House outreach. "One woman, when told about what had come in for her family, had tears running down her face said 'I didn't know that anyone cared what happens to us. This has given me strength to move forward so, someday, I can help other people,' " Sea said. An Ashland couple's car can safely transport a 28-year-old man to Portland where he undergoes treatment for a severe brain tumor. Medford's Midas store installed new brakes free of charge, while gift certificates for Old Navy and Cinemark will help the 37-year-old woman give her teenage daughters a happy holiday. A 10-year-old boy sexually assaulted by his mother's boyfriend will get a new lease on childhood thanks to readers' donations of a skateboard, CD player, Nintendo Advanced Gameboy, baseball cards, gift cards and a basketball and free-standing hoop. Contributions totalling more than $2,200 will benefit other young clients of the Children's Advocacy Center, said Executive Director Marlene Mish. A 20-year-old Eagle Point woman with brittle bone disease inspired $700 in cash donations toward a wheelchair lift, along with the offer of a 1991 van to house the equipment. The wheelchair-bound woman previously was relying on a 1979 vehicle with many thousands of miles. A 50-year-old mentally disabled woman who collected aluminum cans while waiting to see if she qualified for Social Security benefits received "a whole new wardrobe," along with shoes and bedding. The community's caring "cheered up" the single woman who had been depressed for the past few months, said Kate Baxted, executive director of Disability Advocacy for Social and Independent Living. A 33-year-old single mother's bid to erase her past as a gang member and drug addict sparked enough donations to fund a family computer. Southern Oregon Goodwill also accepted clothing, socks, slippers, makeup, bedding, pajamas and special gifts for the Medford family. A couple recovering from methamphetamine addiction at a Medford residential treatment center will start their new drug-free life with dishes, pots and pans, a television and VCR, a dining table and chairs and a new dresser. Upon seeing the furniture, the 24-year-old woman said, "I've never had a dresser," said Wanda Rasmussen, administrator of OnTrack Inc.'s Home Program. The couple's two older children also received new bikes with helmets. A 52-year-old man paralyzed in a motorcycle accident can rest easy in a new recliner. Living Opportunities, which runs the group home where the man lives, also took in enough chairs to pass along to developmentally disabled clients living in a new Medford apartment complex, said Jim Gochenour, director of development for the organization. Three children of a 22-year-old woman recovering from methamphetamine addiction will play on soft, new rugs rather than cold, tile floors this holiday. Addictions Recovery Center also received enough cribs for the woman's 7-month-old baby to install one in the agency's women's transitional home, said case manager Marie Bagley. A Medford family of three crippled by the single father's Crohn's disease had all their Christmas wishes fulfilled. Their house now boasts a mattress and boxspring for the teenage son, comforters for all the beds, clothes for everyone's closet, cookware and special gifts for each child. A homeless White City family of nine received $600 in cash donations and gift certificates, along with Bratz dolls and journals for the middle daughters. Some employees of Rogue Valley Medical Center provided special gifts for all the kids, said Ila Reimer, homeless liaison for the Eagle Point School District. Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail [email protected] . Would you like to respond to this story? If so Click Here to visit our forums. Advertisement Copyright © 1997-2007 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback online casinos news Home Security Systems Online Casino Reviews Men's Clothing Fundraisers UK Homeowner Loans Discount Hotel Reservations Send Flowers Casinos Canada Texas Electric Choice Compare Electric rates in Texas Windermere Van Vleet Trunks, Footlocker Online poker at AbsolutePoker.com