The commons area at Union County High School was filled with love, compassion and the drive to do what's right Dec. 9, as volunteers gathered to help with the Union County Children's Charities Under the Tree gift distribution, formerly known as Union County Toys for Tots. Union County Trustee Gina Buckner, who has chaired the effort for many years, said 492 children were signed up to receive toys this year, up from 480 last year.

Volunteers make sure each child receives at least four gifts that match their requests as closely as possible, but that's not all that families get at Under the Tree. Churches and community organizations were on hand to give much-needed items to each family, including warm coats, hats and gloves, hygiene items, paper products, diapers, detergent, books and more. Gifts were sent home in black plastic bags so parents could wrap them and put them under the tree on Christmas morning.

Buckner thanked all the local businesses and individuals who gave monetary donations, and she thanked everyone who took an ornament from one of many Angel Trees in local businesses and shopped for a child. She also thanked the businesses and organizations that put up Angel Trees and collected bags of fulfilled wishes, including Food City, Tolliver's Market, Okie's, Pete's Place, Janet's Hair and Nail, Commercial Bank, First Century Bank, Atlantic Capital Bank, New South Credit Union, Rhonda's Restaurant, Cedar Ford Baptist Church, and Union County High School Beta Club.

"It's not just me or my office doing it. It's the whole county," said Buckner. "It is unreal how giving people are with this program. With the donations coming in, we have been so blessed, and we have all kinds of volunteers."

She thanked all the volunteers who helped this year and in previous years, including Carol Pratt, Jeri Lett and Denise Cooke who checked every bag to make sure children received what they asked for. She thanked Brooke Simpson for fielding calls from parents and serving as the Under the Tree treasurer, Haven Housewright for helping with the shopping, Marilyn Toppins and Marvin Jeffreys, and a fleet of other volunteers shouldering loads big and small.

Former Union County Business and Professional Association president D. Marie Rhyne was on hand before the distribution to speak about the program's history. She said the effort was founded in 1985 by Union County Senior Citizens, and Rhyne and Delores Graves asked if the UCBPA could help. The program endured as Union County Toys for Tots for many years before the founding of the nonprofit Union County Children's Charities, under which the renamed Under the Tree campaign operates now.

"They say it takes a village," said Rhyne. "It looks like there's a pretty good-size village here today."

Jeffreys, another former UCBPA president, reflected on the early years of the effort.

"Folks, we've seen people standing outside, barefoot, on days colder than this," he said. "This is a big deal. This is a form of worship because worship, true worship, involves some form of sacrifice."