Staff Writer
LIMESTONE — The Limestone Volunteer Fire Department once again broke out the snow tires as certainly no nasty weather was going to keep the firefighters from delivering Toys for Tots to over 125 Limestone and Caswell youths.
Aroostook Republican photoNatalie Bazinet
Limestone Volunteer Firefighters Brian Morgan, Dave Beaulieu, Kevil Pelletier, Chief Paul Durepo, Chad Hamilton, Derek Patten and Peter Beaulieu checked their lists twice on Dec. 21 before delivering Toys for Tots to all the girls and boys of Caswell and Limestone.
Not so unlike the hard working elves of the North Pole, the firemen and other volunteers scrutinized the list, checking it a solid three or four times before loading up bags and boxes of toys to make sure each youth was properly accounted for. While Santa may be able to deliver gifts all in one night, it takes the volunteers quite a bit of time to deliver the gifts especially since their vehicles, unlike Santa’s reindeer, are affected by road conditions.
Members of the department and other volunteers spent hours on Monday and Tuesday delivering gifts; according to Limestone Fire Chief Paul Durepo, the department was still getting requests for needy children as of Tuesday afternoon.
According to Angela Poitras, who assisted with the organization of the program for the Fire Department, there were an increased amount of families in need this year; Limestone and Caswell residents made sure that no child went without and exceeded the monetary amount of donations while maintaining just about the same amount of unwrapped toys donated to the department.
“We started collecting for Toys for Tots the Saturday after Thanksgiving,” Poitras said. The Limestone Fire Department collected gifts during the Limestone Light Parade on Nov. 28.
Various individuals and organizations went above and beyond this year to provide area youths with colorful Christmas gifts, including the Limestone Snowhawks, Limestone Rotary Club, St. Luis Catholic Church, Limestone United Methodist Church, Art Thompson, Bob and Jane Phair, David Christie, and the United Way.
Every donation made a difference in ensuring happy smiles on Christmas morning.
Many volunteers were instrumental in making Toys for Tots possible this year, including the staff of the Limestone Community School, the Dawn F. Barnes Elementary School, and the volunteer firefighters and their families.
Aroostook Republican photo/Natalie Bazinet
Fire Chief Paul Durepo and Firefighter Brian Morgan load a box of Toys for Tots gifts for delivery.
