It was a season of giving for this Southern Arizona politician, as Mayor Arturo Garino provided almost 200 Thanksgiving dinners for less fortunate families in Santa Cruz County and over 100 blankets to elderly members of the community during the holidays.
?It was a great privilege to assist some of the less fortunate families in our community. This helped brighten their holidays and warm our hearts,? said Mayor Garino, in a recent news release.
Mayor Garino?s annual Thanksgiving dinner drive was also a huge success. After receiving several generous contributions, the Mayor was able to provide turkeys and dinner fixings for 160 children and their families at the City Recreation Center on November 20. Local schools were asked to provide names of students whose families might not be having a proper Thanksgiving dinner. The lists were cross-referenced and families were then notified of the assigned pick up date and time.
Due to the generosity of donations, Mayor Garino was also able to provide some 19 turkeys to the Nogales Crossroads Mission Annual Thanksgiving dinner, as well as providing 12 turkeys, pumpkin pies, and dinner rolls to the Nogales Santa Cruz Council on Aging, and providing additional Thanksgiving dinner fixings to the Casitas Santa Cruz.
Mayor Garino then attended the Thanksgiving luncheon at the Santa Cruz Council on Aging and the Casitas Santa Cruz Thanksgiving dinner, after being graciously invited to join the meal. ?I love attending these types of events,? said Mayor Garino in the same release. ??Seeing members of our community enjoying Thanksgiving, makes me all the more grateful for everyone that helped make this possible.?
Not long after the Thanksgiving holiday, Mayor Garino, began his annual Blanket Drive, where he purchases and donates blankets to elderly members of the community all before the Christmas holiday.
Over 100 blankets were purchased and distributed by the Mayor and his office on December 21. Different organizations, such as the Nogales Housing Authority, were contacted and asked to provide addresses of less fortunate, elderly tenants who might need a new blanket.
Once the lists were provided, the Mayor drove to each person?s home and personally handed them their blanket and wished them a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. All recipients were very happy to see the Mayor standing at their door with different blankets asking them to choose their favorite one.
All of the recipients thanked him for the generous gesture and for his good work, while others also told him what their plans for Christmas and New Years were. One house in particular made the experience even more worthwhile for the Mayor
When the elderly woman opened her door and the Mayor explained the reason for his visit, asking her to choose which blanket she preferred, the woman immediately chose a green blanket and told Mayor Garino a heart wrenching story about how her mother passed away two years before and the last thing she purchased her mother, a couple of hours before her death, was a green blanket, which she never saw again.
With tears in her eyes, she told the Mayor that this year had been especially hard for her and seeing him standing at her door, with a green blanket identical to the one she had purchased for her mother had made the holidays more bearable and reassured her that her mother was still with her somehow.
?Hearing stories like these and being able to help somehow make my Holidays a whole lot brighter.? said Mayor Garino. ?And I can?t wait for the new year to begin, so that I can continue helping the community.?
For questions or inquiries, or if you would like to donate towards next year?s Thanksgiving Dinner Drive or Christmas Blanket Drive please contact the Mayor?s executive assistant, Diana Cruz, at (520) 285-5602.
detroit auto show tebow broncos downton abbey season 2 2013 dodge dart shameless kwame brown martin luther king day
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.