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2010-02-09

2010-01-19

Agriculture

Lifestyles

Friday, November 13, 2009 11:00 AM

Angel tree offers opportunity to help strangers, neighbors in need

By COURTNEY SERVAES, Herald Staff Writer

They don’t know who they are.

They don’t know their names. They don’t know their history or their troubles.

But employees at Cargotec, formerly called Ottawa Truck and then Kalmar Industries, know that local families in need could be their friends, their family or even their former coworkers.

“We never know anything about them,” Courtney Sands, with Cargotec, 415 E. Dundee St., said about the local Salvation Army Angel Tree. “We’re assigned a number, and they do research for you.”

Sands said employees at Cargotec adopt angels from the Salvation Army, 130 S. Main St., every year, but this year, they have gone above and beyond what she expected.

“Our business is down. Our employment is down,” Sands said about Cargotec — which laid off 20 employees earlier this year because of slow market conditions. “We’ve had huge layoffs, so we have less people.”

But that hasn’t stopped Cargotec employees — as well as employees at Wal-Mart Distribution Center, 3300 Highway K-68 and Sutton’s Jewelry, 207 S. Main St., — from donating to the Angel Tree, which helps provide elementary students with clothing and toys for Christmas, Sands said.

In fact, Sands said it’s inspired them to donate more and to give more to people who don’t have jobs.

Because you never know who the people in need are, she said.

“Everyone’s uncertain about their own positions, but they are stepping up and saying they want to help,” Sands said. “We know there are some of our own people out there.”

Sands said typically the business adopts 20 to 22 children a year, but since starting the campaign less than two weeks ago, she said employees already have adopted 44 children.

“They’ve absolutely blown away every expectation that I’ve had,” she said. “We’re still a family here.”

In addition to adopting families, Sands said employees also have been donating to Hope House, 302 S. Walnut St.

“They told me not to bring anything else to Hope House for a week,” Sands said. “They’ve been doing awesome.”

Sands added that she knows this is personal for employees at Cargotec — every one of the people involved is just thankful to have a job, she said.

“This could be us. This could be any of us at any time,” she said. “We could be there. Those of us that still have jobs need to help.”

Sands said anyone interested in donating to the Salvation Army or adopting an angel should contact her at (785) 418-5105 or courtney.sands@cargotec.com.

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Angel tree offers opportunity to help strangers, neighbors in need

By COURTNEY SERVAES, Herald Staff Writer

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article | Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.

E-mail this story to a friend | Print this article |
Enjoy the convenience of home delivery of The Ottawa Herald.