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Helping Hands Are Spreading Joy

ROBERT BURKE / Tampa Tribune

Cookie Robinson, admires some of the table top Christmas trees made by members of Helping Hands of Port Tampa City for senior homebound residents of the area. She's the chairperson of the group.

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By MARK HOLAN, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 21, 2007

PORT TAMPA - There's a forest of Christmas trees inside Cookie Robinson's house.

But the Victorian-theme, tabletop trees won't stand there much longer.

The Port Tampa Helping Hands group will deliver a tree to 35 local seniors the first week of December.

It's a new holiday tradition for the volunteer group, which for five years has provided Christmas dinners and toys to needy families under the auspices of the Port Tampa City Woman's Club.

"We just felt we could reach out to our elderly," said Robinson, an interior decorator.

Wanda Howard, outreach coordinator for the woman's club and Mount Zion African Methodist Episcopal Church, put together the list of tree recipients, including residents at two nursing homes.

"The ones that know already think it's a great idea and they can't wait to get to them," Howard said.

The trees range in height from about a foot to 30 inches, and were bought at post-Christmas sales.

"That's why they are all so different in size; some are tall and some are small," volunteer Carol Curtiss said.

American Silk Flowers, a wholesale supply company that Robinson does business with, provided decorating materials, including tiny white lights, red and gold ornaments, red berries and gold ribbons. Volunteers began decorating the trees in October, spending about 150 hours on the project.

Children from the after-school program at the Kwane Doster Southwest Port Tampa Community Center are making Christmas cards for the seniors, and the delivery also will include a tin of cookies.

Helping Hands has about 30 volunteers and sponsors, said Robinson, who chairs the group. She said the group provided about $75 in toys and other gifts to each of the nearly 70 youngsters on its Christmas list, and provided meals to 40 families.

The seniors will keep the trees.

"So we will have to come up with different people for next year," Curtiss said. "The need will still be there."

HELPING HANDS

For information about Helping Hands, call Cookie Robinson at (813) 390-9766. Checks may be made payable to PTCWC, P.O. Box 19067, Tampa FL 33686.

Reporter Mark Holan can be reached at (813) 835-2102 or mholan@tampatrib.com.

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