The National City Lions Clubs wants to bring the spirit of the holidays to its low-income residents and families.
The annual Spirit of the Holidays event on Dec. 17 at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center at 140 E. 12th St. will provide a frozen turkey, canned goods and a pie for low-income families to take home for a nice holiday meal.
Each child under 12 years of age will get to visit Santa Claus and select an age appropriate toy to take home for Christmas.
To be a recipient, families must fill out an application and submit proof of income, proof of residence and proof of welfare or SSI, CalWORKs, section 8 to provide proof they are low income.
The College Campus Lions of National City and the Host Lions Club, along with the National City Fire Department select the recipients.
Host Lions Club member Brian Clapper said the event costs about $7,000, with all the money coming from fundraisers and National City firefighters and National School District principals hosting pancake breakfasts throughout the year. Clapper also said sponsors such as EDCO and JRP Auto Sales also contribute monetarily for the event.
Clapper said with the demographics of National City it is important to host an event like this so that no family goes without a Christmas.
“It makes my holidays,” he said. “It gets me in the spirit to see these kids be able to come down here, see Santa, get a toy and know that they are going to have a nice dinner on Christmas so when I’m having my Christmas dinner they too are having their Christmas dinner.”
Kevin Hamel, a firefighter paramedic for the National City Fire Department, said firefighters always get involved with the community and Spirit of the Holidays is just one example.
“It’s nice to be able to give back and we see these people on calls and it’s something that we can kind of help them,” he said. “We know that times can be tough during the holidays, money can be tight. This is just something that we can give back to the community. It’s good for us, it’s good for them and it is good for the community.”
Clapper said families do not necessarily have to celebrate Christmas in order to be a recipient of the food and a toy.
“We want to make sure all families who need it, could come in get it. Its not only geared towards people who believe in Christmas,” he said.
