Bay City Lions Club Hosts 45th Annual Children's Christmas Party
December 13, 2013
By: Josh Sharrow
The Bay City Lions Club hosted its annual Children's Holiday Party on Wednesday, December 11th at the Bay City Boys and Girls Club.
The holiday celebration included dinner for nearly 300 children and their families, a magic show by area entertainer, Tommy Anderson, individual visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus, and a gift for each child. Club members do the cooking, set up and tear down, gift wrapping, and serve the food. Volunteer elves assist Santa and Mrs. Claus. Bus transportation to the event is also provided with help from Bay Metro.
Free vision screenings for children ages 1-5 were also offered through the Lions Project Kidsight program. A special camera is used to take a picture of the youngster's eyes. Results are immediate and can indicate whether a professional exam is needed.
The Bay City Lions Club has been hosting this party for 45 years. Darlene Krumpholz, the party's organizer, says it has grown from just a few children to nearly 300 in recent years as the need has grown in our community. Several local charitable groups refer eligible families from throughout Bay County and generous sponsors such as Coca Cola, Gordon Food Service, and McDonald's help us make it happen. "We do it for the looks on the kids' faces when they see Santa and receive that toy." Krumpholz said.
Some of this year's toys were the result of The Stocking The Trailer Toy Drive.
Photo by Bay City Lions Club
© MyBayCity.com
Santa was on hand to pass out presents.
Photo by Bay City Lions Club
© MyBayCity.com
The Bay City Lions Club was established 90 years ago and boasts over 200 members who are active in a variety of projects such as providing eyeglasses and hearing aids to those who cannot afford them, collecting used eyeglasses for overseas missions, supporting Leader Dog for the Blind, building and maintaining Bay City's Bigelow Park, Kidsight vision screening for children, and many more. The primary fundraiser is Tag Days when members are out in the streets each April to collect the money to fund these projects. Every dollar collected from the public goes directly back into the community. Anyone interested in joining the Club is asked to email us at BayCityLionsClub@gmail.com