Sharing holiday spirit

Las Vegas College students bring gifts to care center residents

Margie Fraley, a resident of the Life Care Center of Paradise Valley, was overwhelmed by the kindness of some recent visitors.

"It was so nice. I think they overdid themselves," the 80-year-old said.

She said she wanted to share some of the gifts given to her by students of Las Vegas College with her grandchildren, 3-year-old Ben and 1-year-old Greg. She planned to put a red ribbon around a stuffed animal given to her by the students and give it to one of her grandsons. She also got a sweater to fit her that she loved.

The group of students volunteered to distribute the gifts the college has been collecting for weeks for the residents of the care center, 2325 E. Harmon Ave., as part of Las Vegas College Companion Day, held on Dec. 10, now in its third year. Residents got lap blankets, slippers, puzzles, baked items and more.

The project was the idea of Debbie Bolda, a Las Vegas College student who observed that a lot of attention gets focused on children around the holidays. She wanted to find a way to make sure seniors had a happy holiday as well.

"We wanted to do something for the seniors because more often than not they're forgotten," said Marcy Waldie, an instructor at Las Vegas College who helped plan and create the event. "Even if they have someone, their family and friends are very busy this time of year."

The students handed out gifts and talked with the seniors. There was a pile of gifts left over as well. They will be given to residents of the home who could not attend the event.

Everybody loves a gift, said Cynthia Deriquito, director of activities at Life Care Center, and in some cases the gifts even fill physical needs of some of the residents.

Residents who are just in the home for a short time recuperating from a major illness won't generally move in any personal belongings. Gifts of lap blankets and slippers come in very handy for them.

"They need to be warm," Deriquito said.

Deriquito said the home gets a good amount of visitors around the holidays and that's a good thing. There are visits from outside groups at least once a day, sometimes twice a day.

The residents of the home love the visits, she said. They like to enjoy the festive time of year as much as anyone. Not all residents have family close by.

"Some of them miss their grandchildren," Deriquito said.

Students said they enjoyed the interaction.

"It's just nice to help others and I know some of them don't have families," said Carrie Crimmins, a Las Vegas College student.

Debbie Andrade, also a student at the Henderson-based college, said seeing the reaction of the residents was the best part of the visit.

"They were really excited," she said.