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Children ‘buy’ gifts for folks at ‘Outlet Mall’
by Gregory R. Norfleet · News · December 11, 2014
One young boy walked into the North Pole Outlet Mall in hopes of finding a blender for his mother.
He had been a bit anxious when the family could not find one while shopping on Black Friday, volunteer Lori Flanders of Cedar Rapids said.
Yes, they had one.
“He was so excited he found one here,” she said.
Flanders, Norm and Pat Bickford and others who organized and volunteered at the shop during Christmas Past had plenty of stories to tell with the inaugural weekend.
The Bickfords spearheaded the project, which placed tickets into 310 prekindergarten-through-second-grade children’s backpacks at school: Turn in your ticket to “buy” a gift at the store, which was open during the same hours when Santa and Mrs. Claus visited Main Street West Branch Friday and Saturday.
The North Pole Outlet Mall was set up in the back part of the MSWB office, and more than 200 children redeemed their tickets during the festival, and Norm Bickford called it a success.
Tana Sabourin, who helped wrap presents, called it a “major” success.
“These people deserve a lot of credit,” she said of the event’s organizers. “To see the look on the kids’ faces … they were so excited to get presents (to give).”
Norm Bickford said he got the idea for the store from his sister-in-law, Cleva Bickford of Wisconsin, who helped with a similar project there.
The Bickfords started preparing back in July for the December event, collecting donations of gifts or money to buy gifts and supplies, like wrapping paper and tape.
By the time the store opened for its first customer, they had more than 400 gifts on the shelves.
“We didn’t want the last kid to pick from just a very few things,” he said.
Some children approached the store, saying they missed school when the tickets were handed out. Not knowing how many children would use the store, the Bickfords planned to limit access to the store to those who brought tickets, but they did not turn any children away.
Pat Bickford said the location, next to Santa and Mrs. Claus, “was a great spot.”
“Little kids don’t have jobs, so we think it’s great if they can get their parent a Christmas present,” she said.
Volunteers, including high school students in the National Honor Society, wrapped every present so parents could not see what the child picked out, Pat said. The volunteers also wore reindeer antlers and helped the children make their selections.
Pat also hoped the store would prompt more families to take part in Christmas Past.
“We got some pretty nice gifts,” she said.
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