Time, Money and Effort Bring Joy to Recipients--and Donors

From tiny tots to mature adults, there are many of us who at one time or another have wished for a visit from Santa. In fact, there are some of us who have toyed with the idea of dressing up and playing Santa--all an attempt to bring joy and good cheer to ourselves and others.

Public relations representative Ward Grant of Toluca Lake, for instance, has been a Santa to the children at Child Help U.S.A. on some Christmases. “When you pull on that red suit and beard,” he says, “somehow you also assume the loving, caring character of Santa.”

Northridge business executive Lou Marino has donned a Santa suit for the past 17 years, delivering food and toys to children and needy families. Sharing holiday cheer is a family tradition Marino learned from his parents and has passed on to his children. “When you give from the heart,” Marino says, “it comes back with good feelings. Be sure to allow those who receive to maintain their dignity.”

The following list will stimulate ideas for ways you might gladden your own heart while bringing joy to others:

Join groups that go caroling at hospitals and nursing homes.

The Salvation Army, 155 Oak St., Ventura, is one of many groups to visit hospitals and nursing homes during the holiday season. Capt. Scott Ramsey of the Ventura branch invites volunteers to participate Sunday in spirited caroling at Traecy Villa, Loma Vista at Mill Road, Ventura, and to escort patients to the caroling site. Call (805) 648-5031 for details. In other areas, check with churches and charity groups to see if they have plans for caroling.

Camarillo State Hospital and Development Center, 1878 S. Lewis Road, Camarillo, needs volunteers to join with their staff in caroling, to sponsor parties or provide gifts for client-units. Contact Volunteer Services, (805) 484-3661, Ext. 4478.

Teen-age volunteers can help seniors.

La Mirada Volunteer Center at the Kling Center, 12900 Bluefield Ave., La Mirada, is one of many volunteer centers in Southern California that provides opportunities for teen-agers. They can assist the Meals on Wheels program and take part in the distribution of canned goods at this site during the holidays. Call (213) 943-0131, Ext. 234. Centers in other areas will have information on ways teen-agers can help.

Help a sightless person or someone with poor vision.

Sharing a book you enjoy is special. Set aside a free hour each week to read to another. Ask for their suggestions. Or you may start with a holiday book, such as Dickens’ “The Christmas Carol.”

Recorded books also are available in the lending library of the Braille Institute to those legally blind, those with dyslexia or those unable to hold a book, through the Talking Books program. Call the Braille Institute, 741 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 663-1111 or (213) 660-3880.

Drive someone who can’t get around alone to see various holiday displays and decorations.

Each year Descanso Gardens, 1418 Descanso Drive, La Canada, dresses up for the season. Trees of Americana-themed decorations will be set up in the alcoves of Van de Kamp Hall. Don’t miss the antique dolls in the children’s room of Hospitality House. A train run by the Live Steamers offers rides through the Rose Garden for $1. General admission to the gardens is $3, seniors 62 and over and college students with ID pay $1.50, 75 cents for ages 5-12, and children 4 and under free.

Along Candy Cane Lane, a 30-year tradition, the sprawling ranch homes in an area of Woodland Hills have been decorated for the season. Boundaries are Lubao Avenue on the west to Corbin Avenue, and Martha Street on the south to Oxnard Avenue. Each street has a theme of its own. The best time to view is after dark. Free.

Reach out to youngsters in trouble.

Youthful prisoners who can’t be furloughed may not have received a gift since incarceration. You may donate items like soap, shampoo, toothpaste and reading and writing materials. Call Yoshi Miya, donation coordinator for the Los Angeles camps and juvenile halls, (213) 940-2817. He can arrange for pickup of large quantities.

You may join Three’s Company, a group that works with youths at Central, San Fernando Valley (reopening Jan. 1) and Las Padrinas juvenile halls. In a non-judgmental group setting, volunteers (including some past offenders) nurture a youth’s self-esteem and help with social skills, grooming and job seeking. Call Suzanne Gray at (213) 692-1281.

Collect toys to donate to needy children.

On Dec. 18, a helicopter will deliver Santa, loaded with stockings for the children, to the Child Help U.S.A. residential treatment center in Beaumont. The bearded gent will talk to each 2- to 12-year-old. Call Child Help at (818) 347-7280 for toy drop-off points. Please mark them for girl or boy and designate the appropriate age.

Other groups that collect toys: Toys for Tots, in conjunction with the U.S. Marine Corps, picks up contributions at your local fire station. Gifts should be unwrapped and delivered by Dec. 23.

We Share gives toys to children each year. Toys must be delivered by Friday to System National Security, 608 S. New Hampshire Ave., Los Angeles, (213) 387-7600; or to Space Maintainers, 9129 Lurline Ave., Chatsworth, (818) 998-7460.

Volunteer to plant trees.

If you’ve been feeling guilty about all those fir trees cut for holiday celebrations, join TreePeople, a local environmental group. They’ll help you plant new trees in your neighborhood to provide shade and filter smog.

On weekends throughout the year, groups of volunteers plant and maintain trees on streets, in parks, parking lots and at city schools in local mountains. For more information, call (818) 769-2663 or (213) 273-8733.

Volunteer to serve meals to the needy.

Contact the Union Rescue Mission to help serve meals Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. Alex Akar encourages volunteers to call (213) 628-6103 as soon as possible.

Chip-in, a network of social service agencies and community organizations, is looking for volunteers to prepare and serve meals to the homeless in Hollywood daily throughout the year. The organization also seeks blankets and jackets. Call (213) 466-1969 or (213) 876-8426.

Take a wheelchair-bound person to the Tournament of Roses Parade.

Wheelchair Haven is a reserved parade observation site on Sierra Madre Boulevard between Villa and Del Vina streets (north of Interstate 210) set aside for handicapped people in wheelchairs with one companion (they should bring a folding chair). Dress warmly and arrive at that location on Jan. 2 from 8 to 9 a.m. Ticket reservations are a must. Send a self-addressed envelope with 50 cents postage to Wheelchair Haven, c/o Ed Flynn, 750 E. Green St., Room 340, Pasadena, Calif. 91101, to receive two tickets and a fact sheet.

Take someone without transportation to a concert or holiday event.

The Los Angeles Master Chorale performs at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion Dec. 17 at 2 p.m. and Dec. 18 at 7 p.m. Tickets, available at the Music Center, 135 N. Grand Ave., Los Angeles, range from $13 to $29.50, with 50% off for students with ID, youth 17 and under and seniors 60 and over. The Los Angeles Children’s Choir will sing. The audience can participate in a sing-along. There also will be free family entertainment before each concert. Call (213) 972-7211.

In a 50-year tradition, “Las Posadas” will be presented each night Dec. 16-24 at the Avila Adobe on Olvera Street in Los Angeles. Musicians, merchants in costumes, children portraying angels and visitors move down the pedestrian street in a procession that symbolizes the biblical story of Joseph and Mary searching for an inn. Later, there is the breaking of the pinata by the children. Festivities start at 7 p.m. with a concert by a costumed choir from Mexico. The Las Posadas ceremony begins at 8 each night.