Emergency crews help kids pick out presents, dinner

Chris McCarty

Ken Cunningham smiled Wednesday under the weight of a box half his size while he walked out of Meijer.

He was hauling his new all-terrain, remote-controlled vehicle that uniform-clad Jeff Morin, Mobile Medical Response paramedic supervisor, helped him pick out.

“I am not sure it will fit in the trunk,” the seventh grader said.

Cunningham joined 24 other needy children at Meijer, 1015 Pickard St., who had the opportunity to “shop with a hero.”

Each child was given $100 and paired up with one of 12 paramedics, firefighters and policemen to aid in their store search.

Each hero took two to three different children shopping, during one of three different shifts.

Kids were encouraged to find items for their family as well as themselves, said Meijer Store Director Barry Playford.

A checkout lane was dedicated to only their purchases.

“I love this. I’ve never had a $100 spent on me,” said Ken’s younger sister Jessica Cunningham.

Meijer vendors 7UP, Inc. and Nabisco acted as program sponsors and The Salvation Army in Alma supplied the families.

Only children had the opportunity to shop, but many brought their families, too.

“We wanted it to be a family atmosphere,” Playford said.

Meijer supplied them with pizza and various snacks.

After the children finished shopping, they took home a gift basket with all things necessary for a Christmas dinner, Playford said.

“I think all this is needed,” said Salvation Army Capt. Gary Gugala. “The families we brought here today really struggle to put food on the table and a roof over their heads.”

Often, the children’s parents and grandparents don’t have the time or the finances to do this, said Jerry Wieferich, Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribal Fire Department firefighter and emergency medical technician.

“I think it is wonderful, what they are doing,” said Mount Pleasant resident Beverly Parker, while her grandchildren shopped.

Her granddaughter specifically asked to shop with an EMT.

“She really looks up to them,” Parker said.

James Brousseau, a 12-year-old Saint Louis resident, was excited about being paired with Tribal Police Officer Fred Stinson.

“He is big on cops and I am trying to be his buddy,” Stinson said. “He is in seventh heaven right now.”

Brousseau selected gifts for his brother, stepfather and his mother, after Stinson advised him “it is better to give than to receive.”

The look on his face when he located what he was looking for was priceless, Stinson said.

“I am having fun, but it is not always easy to find what I want,” Brousseau said,

Russell Kinnaman, 8, looked forward to this program for 10 days.

“It is pretty cool,” he said.

Meijer also donated $2,500 to Toys for Tots, an organization that collects toys for children who cannot afford them.