Home Instead presents Santa to a Senior to help with loneliness

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WBAY) - The holiday season can be lonely for some community members. One local facility is helping senior citizens celebrate through a program gifting presents to them.

It’s called Be a Santa to a Senior.

Home Instead, an in-home senior care service in Green Bay, partners with eight companies to bring holiday gifts to residents at 11 facilities; gifts like puzzles, personal care items, blankets to name a few.

McCormick Assisted Living in Green Bay received gifts on Tuesday. They start to organize for the holiday season in August. The seniors write their desired gifts on their tag, and by the beginning of December, organizers collect the gifts from all their sponsor companies.

Home Instead will finish delivering their gifts this Friday and say many people who help do it in honor of a grandparent or family member who has passed, making this kind act as meaningful for the giver as the receiver.

“Seeing how people take the time out of their own busy schedules and lives during this extremely stressful time of year to give to strangers. How they take the time to purchase wrap these gifts and make them so beautiful it was so heartwarming to see,” said Amy Mittag, a First Impression Specialist for Home Instead and who runs Be a Santa for a Senior.

“For our residents here some of them have amazing families but some don’t have any family at all so they don’t always get to receive things during Christmas time and when we have communities like this and bring these beautiful gifts wrapped. It’s just to see the light in their face. It’s like a child on Christmas morning again,” said Kailey Miller, Life Enrichment Coordinator, McCormick Assisted Living in Green Bay.

Facilities say the program brings cheer to all their residents. Home Instead adds it’s always looking to partner with more businesses to be able to help more seniors.

If you’re interested in learning more on being part of this program next year, here’s a link to the website.