For the first 25 years of Santa’s Helper Elf Mama Annie Davis worked hand-in-hand with me on publicizing the annual fundraising event that benefits the Orange Volunteer Fire Department.Annie passed away in September 2019 and things have changed. Covid even forced the cancelation of the event last year. But I found this information on Facebook and decided to share it with all of you in Annie’s honor so you wouldn’t miss out.
From the OVFD Auxiliary:
The Santa Teams at the Orange Volunteer Fire Department and Auxiliary are busy getting ready to deliver gifts, smiles, and cheer to many families in Orange. Saturday, December 18th 2021, Santa will arrive between 2:00 PM and 8:00 PM.
You can pre-register for Santa’s Helper online until November 14th.
Gift drop-off day is Saturday November 20th and is open to all homes in Orange. We are more than halfway to our capacity of 160 houses for delivery, so if you want to make sure to be part of this festive tradition, pre-register today!
Santa’s Helper is a wonderful, exciting and memorable fund-raising event with all of the proceeds going to the Orange Volunteer Fire Department towards life-saving equipment and training. Santa’s Helper has become a tradition both within the Fire Department and community alike over the past 27 years, and we are excited to be bringing Santa back this year!
Each year, our 6 Santa’s Helper Teams are excited to visit and deliver gifts, take photos and help make lasting memories and traditions for every family. Children and adults look forward to seeing the fire trucks with lights and sirens coming down their street to their front door, with Santa leading the way!
PLEASE FOLLOW THESE GUIDELINES:
GIFT DROP-OFF DAY: Saturday, November 20th, 2021, 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM at Fire Station #2, 355 Boston Post Road. We ask that you DO NOT arrive earlier.
This year we will be doing a drive-thru drop-off in the bays; you will get in line at the back of the fire house entering from Lambert Road, you will drive into the bay and stay in your car. Have your gifts ready to go in your back seat or trunk. We will take your information and payment, and grab the gifts out of your car.
ALSO NEW THIS YEAR: We are asking participants that HAVE NOT pre-registered (more information below) to please bring a 3×5 card (or similar) with the following information:
1 – your name (adult at residence night of delivery)
2 – address for delivery day (must be in Orange, CT)
3 – phone number
4 – email address
5 – number of kids participating/total number of gifts
6 – if you are a previous participant or new
This will help minimize direct contact so we can social distance as much as possible, to keep everyone safe and healthy.
GIFT RULES AND INFORMATION: There is a cost of $20 per gift/recipient. Each gift must be INDIVIDUALLY wrapped in your favorite holiday paper with an overwrap of plain brown paper. The name and delivery address of the recipient must be clearly printed on the outside of each gift on the brown paper.
Santa has a lot of gifts to deliver, so we are unable to accommodate gifts too large or too heavy, Santa especially appreciates that. You should have all the gifts for your visit with you on Gift Drop-Off Day.
Please contact us ahead of time at OVFDSantasHelper@gmail.com for special directions if you have a large party, a large amount of gifts, or have multiple families dropping off for the same address.
PRE-REGISTRATION (optional): If you would like to pre-register, please fill out the form at https://forms.gle/g6EATYLz1JfFtjHfA. This will make gift drop-off easier and quicker for all involved. You can even pre-pay so all you need to do is drop off your gifts that day, all the paperwork will be filled out before you get there!
Pre-Registration will be open through November 14th (or until our limit of 160 homes has been reached), you will still be able to sign-up on Gift Drop-Off Day
if you miss this deadline as long as we have not reached our limit. *Please note, you still need to attend Gift Drop-Off Day with your gifts to finalize the process.
Due to COVID, we may need to include extra safety measures to keep everyone safe, we will know specifics as it gets closer and as we watch the progression.
These measures will be communicated ahead of time and must be followed for us to be able to deliver gifts to your house. We only want to spread holiday cheer and joy, not germs and viruses.
Please note we have a limit of 160 homes Santa can visit this year, so pre-registration is highly encouraged.
Any questions, please reach out to OVFDSantasHelper@gmail.com
More information also available on our Facebook page at facebook.com/OVFDAuxiliary or our website at orangevfd.org/santas-helper
*E-mailing Santa’s Helper does not guarantee you a spot on the delivery route. Sign-up is on Gift Drop-Off day and it is on a first come-first serve basis.