If you have children and have ever been in a car accident, you know how scary it is for you as an adult–so you can imagine the fear children must go through. If you have ever been in a fire and had to leave your home in the middle of winter and stand in the freezing weather while the fire department tries to save your house, you can understand the discomfort of the cold.
First Responders are special people–fire fighters getting up in the middle of the night to answer a 3-alarm fire; police answering calls to help those in horrible car accidents; whatever the crises, these fine people always answer the calls that come in.
The idea to collect teddy bears and/or other small stuffed animals and small blankets or throws was talked about in our church. A member called the Sheriff’s Departmnt and asked about donating these types of items and the Sheriff gave a resounding “Yes, please!” So, that’s what we did for the month of November. We collected all sorts of small stuffed animals and throws for the first-responders to hand out wherever needed. The Sheriff stated he would shrink wrap all the stuffed toys and throws to keep them clean when police and fire fighters toss them into their trunks or trucks to take along on their calls.
I can imagine a small, crying, child, cold and scared being comforted by a teddy bear as someone wraps him a warm throw. Here is a sample of what we collected for the Wise County Sheriff’s Department to hand out to first responders.