Despite his busy schedule, Santa with his state police escorts, stopped by Greenwood Elementary School during MSP’s Winter Wonderland holiday outreach event. He was greeted at the school by the Princess Anne Barrack Commander, Lt. Patrick Metzger, and hundreds of children who were anxiously awaiting his arrival.
“Community outreach is an important part of our efforts at the Princess Anne barrack to promote a safe, healthy and stable environment for all Somerset County children and families,” Metzger said. “Together with our community partners, we were able to hold a fun event for our children, ensure they received a Christmas gift and their families had food for the holidays.”
The spring-like weather didn’t deter Santa. He posed for photos and visited with more than 250 children and their families. Thanks to the support of Toys for Tots, Santa and his helpers were able to give Christmas gifts to every child.
The Washington High School Delta Gems Sorority assisted Santa by wrapping all of the gifts and students from Crisfield Academy and High School’s Students Against Destructive Decisions passed out the gifts during Winter Wonderland. All children were also entered into special prize drawings. Six youths went home with brand new bicycles courtesy of the Maryland State Police.
With the help of the Maryland Food Bank, troopers provided a holiday food distribution of canned goods and non-perishables, meat, fresh fruit and vegetables for more than 200 families. In addition to helping with preparation and decorating for Winter Wonderland, students from the University of Maryland Eastern Shore worked with MSP to package and distribute the food to families throughout the day.
Sonrise Church provided holiday music, bouncy houses, snow cones and popcorn for children to enjoy. A plethora of community partners set up vendor tables and offered information about community resources available to children and families in Somerset County.
The event was also an opportunity to build community ties with local law enforcement agencies. Winter Wonderland was partially supported by the Somerset County Local Management Board’s Communities Mobilizing for Change on Alcohol program, which aims to educate youth and prevent underage drinking. Troopers and officers with Maryland Natural Resources Police promoted prevention efforts and encouraged youth to avoid alcohol, drugs and tobacco, and to discourage bullying. The Somerset County Sheriff’s Office provided free child fingerprinting and the Princess Anne Police Department manned the grill and fed more than 400 hungry folks throughout the day.
Winter Wonderland was sponsored by the Somerset County Local Management Board, Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore, Mountaire Farms, PNC Bank, Giant Food and Sysco. Any parent who didn’t pick up their child’s photo with Santa at Winter Wonderland can do so by stopping by the Maryland State Police, Princess Anne Barrack X on Perry Road.
1 comment:
For that area it should have been a black Santa.
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