Page A10 Berthoud Weekly Surveyor

December 13, 2012

Chevy Chase is our Christmas tradition, whats yours?

By Heidi Kerr-Schlaefer The Surveyor There is no other time of year where traditions play such a vital role in our lives. The holidays are rich with all sorts of cultural customs and expectations. Many rituals surrounding Christmas come from our heritage, and these may be quite different depending on whether our people hailed from Germany or South America, but individual families have developed special and sometimes peculiar traditions that are all their own. Our household has one of these odd traditions. Every season we watch National Lampoons Christmas Vacation, while my husband bakes a huge batch of chocolate chip cookies. This is the one time of year that he bakes, and I typically complain the entire evening about having to watch this silly holiday film. My incessant complaining has become part of the tradition. Our tradition came about early in our relationship when my husband found out that I had never seen the entire movie, and this was apparently unacceptable. So now, every year, Im subjected to this ridiculous Chevy Chase movie. While our tradition is a bit uncustomary, some families do the usual stuff, like cruising the fancy neighborhoods to see the lights, or attending Christmas Eve Mass, or baking Christmas cookies with grandma. Still others have found a unique way to put their personal stamp on the holidays. You may have heard of Elf on the Shelf, but Tracy Monthei Smith of RFI Marketing in Fort Collins has taken this tradition a bit further. We have elves that randomly come every day, starting the day the kids get out of school up until Christmas morning, said Smith. They leave little gifts by the door as they check-up on the naughty/nice list. The elves are Stinky and Pete and they smell suspiciously of cheap perfume thats how the kids know theyve been there. Even though the kids are entering their teens, I dont dare give up Stinky and Pete! Bishop Ostteen, father of one from Boulder, has created a new tradition that includes heading to Rocky Mountain Park after presents and breakfast on Christmas day. He spends a few hours at the park before finding a random Chinese restaurant to eat at on his way home. borly Service who connect low-income residents with a few extras during the holiday season. The nonprofit agency, which is open Monday to Thursday, provides for basic needs, gives referrals, and offers advocacy to people who are experiencing the effects of poverty or a situational crisis. For most families, the holidays are about building traditions together. If you cant afford food and gifts and youre stressed about finances, you cant build that tradition, said Bente James, assistant director of the House of Neighborly Service. It really is a privilege to be able to extend the generosity of the community to people in need, James said. The Christmas program matches clients with a donor family, which assembles a food basket with a turkey or ham and all of the fixings or provides a gift card for the clients to buy their own meals. Some of the donors give gifts in addition to the baskets, James said. Last year, 670 clients received baskets through the program. If there are not enough donors, the nonprofit will provide the remaining clients with the food they need for a holiday basket Chef and food blogger Lara FicklinKelleher of Fort Collins serves her large family green chili with turkey for Christmas dinner, while the Flores family, also of Fort Collins enjoys tamales every Christmas. Specific food combinations seem to be a big part of many holiday traditions. While turkey and ham are the most common, some families, like Ryan Arbuthnots, dine on steak and lobster on Christmas Eve and the Cramer family of Loveland always has roast beef for Christmas dinner, although if it was a good hunting season the beef is replaced with elk. The Clark family of Loveland has a special tradition involving music, not surprising since Steve Clark is the front man in the local band, Last Men on Earth. After we go to Christmas Eve church service, we go home and whip up lots of appetizers, start a fireplace and Steve gets out the guitar and we all sing Christmas carols, said Karen Clark. Traditions are a big part of what the season is all about. If it werent for these special moments, the holidays wouldnt be as unique and memorable. from the food pantry, James said. We never will run out. I think its because people get more generous at Christmas, James said. We serve everybody that really needs it; thats our goal. Clients of the nonprofit can receive the Christmas baskets on top of their monthly food baskets, which provide enough food for one week for each member of the family. Grocery stores, churches and the community donate the food for the baskets, distributed at an average rate of 500 to 600 a month. In 2011, the nonprofit gave out nearly 338,350 pounds of food almost triple the 131,600 pounds given in 2000 through the food pantry, its largest program. The nonprofit serves an average of 20 to 25 clients in the morning and the same number in the afternoon for the food pantry and the other programs of the agency. Those other programs, which have various qualification requirements, include: Access to clothing and household items which is available to clients one time each month. At this time the agency is in need of winter coats and clothing, gloves, socks and boots. The transportation program which provides gas vouchers or bus passes to jobs and medical appoint-

Does your family have a special custom at this time of year? If so, wed love to hear about it on the Surveyors Face-

book page at www.Facebook.com/BerthoudSurveyor.

HSN gives year round

By Shelley Widhalm Loveland Reporter-Herald
As Erin Becerra prepares Christmas baskets for the communitys needy residents, she said she likes to see the look of relief on their faces. If youre struggling to meet these basic needs, its hard to enjoy the holiday season, said Becerra, food program manager at the House of Neighborly Service. It really brightens peoples days to know that someone cares about them. The House of Neighborly Service, 565 N. Cleveland Ave., is a recipient agency of the Northern Colorado Empty Stocking Fund, a holiday fundraising campaign that provides donations to area nonprofits in Larimer and Weld counties. Becerra is among the staff and volunteers at the House of Neigh-

ments, available once a year. The utility program which provides assistance with one utility bill through a cooperative effort with the city of Loveland and Emergency Outreach Colorado. The assistance is provided once a year to clients whose service is disconnected. The prescription program which provides assistance up to $200, or four times a year. Motel vouchers where families can receive a motel stay for up to two weeks, while Courtesy photo they look for more perErin Becerra, left, shows Alma Blanco how to pack manent housing. a grocery bag at the House of Neighborly Service in The emergency shelter where home- Loveland in this 2010 file photo. less individuals may be really are struggling, who need that eligible to receive emergency shelter extra hand up, James said. We want during the colder months and can acto be a little bit of heaven in Loveland. cess the day shelter, 137 Connection, Northern Colorado Empty Stocking year round. The night shelter, which Fund rotates among 10 participating churchVisit www.nocoemptystocking.org es, is open when the high is 40 degrees or www.UnitedWayWeld.org to learn during the day and 20 at night. more about Northern Colorado Empty We really are here for people who Stocking Fund.