Payton Baggett Reporting
news@clarksvillenow.com
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Firefighters from Clarksville Fire Rescue have made the holiday season a happy time for some local families by giving them over $1,800 in toys for Christmas.
The firefighters and officers of Shift B loaded up their trucks and left Station 1 on the afternoon of December 20 to personally deliver the gifts to those in need.
Assistant Chief Andy Keatts recalls that the idea to give back started as an alternative to their tradition of giving Christmas gifts to each other. They pooled their money to assist one family, and now, three years later, they have collected enough toys for four families.
Those receiving gifts were recommended by several local churches because they had recent financial difficulties or did not qualify for help from other organizations.
“They are children who otherwise wouldn’t have much of a Christmas, if any at all,” Keatts said. “Every year it’s just a blessing to see the kid’s faces when we come by, so that’s really worth its weight in gold to us.”