Christmas store helps veterans and their families

Veterans and their families at the Montana Veterans Home won’t go without this Christmas, no matter what. For years now the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary Unit 137 from Kalispell and the Columbia Falls Auxiliary have teamed up to provide a “Christmas Store” for veterans.

Veterans are able to shop at the store for gifts for family members and themselves. Then the ladies gather together, wrap the gifts and deliver them, sometimes by mail, more often in person.

The auxiliary groups have an annual poppy sale to fund the project and spend about $3,000 in gifts — mostly clothing, every year, noted president Ann McCary.

They work on the project all year long and then hold the event at the home the first weekend of December. McCary said they can always use donations and help. All they ask is that donations are new items.

“I take stuff all year round,” she said. “I rent a storage unit for this.”

This year they’ll provide gifts and services for all 117 veterans at the home — even those that say they don’t want something end up with a gift, McCary said with a smile.

While the actual gift giving is over for this year, McCary said folks who want to donate for next year can contact her at (406) 314-1933.