TIVERTON, R.I. (WPRI) — For 10 years, Judy Brogan has been giving out holiday gift baskets to seniors in the Tiverton community in Rhode Island.
“I’m a registered nurse. I’ve worked for the last 28 years in long-term care, so I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for the elderly,” she explained.
Brogan started raffling off baskets at work and donated the proceeds to the resident activity fund.
“Then I started Santa for Seniors,” she said. “I started with maybe about 20 baskets. I’ve worked up to about 50 of them.”
In the past, Brogan bought everything for the baskets herself. This year, she got some help from the community after posting about the project on social media.
“I put a basket at the police department, and I went down there four times to empty out that basket,” Brogan explained. “My fellow Tivertonians, they came through.”
Every year the baskets have a theme. This year’s theme is focused on keeping people’s minds sharp.
“In the baskets this year, I have large-print crossword puzzles and word seek puzzles. I have coffee cups, some different assorted teas, hot chocolate,” Brogan said.
“It’s pretty much everything so they can sit, relax, have a cup of tea, do a crossword puzzle and just keep their mind active,” she continued.
The baskets are delivered to seniors’ doors by police officers in uniform.
“They’re coming, and they’re visiting them,” Brogan said. “They’re giving them a little gift to let them know that they’re still thought about.”
“We’re going to get to that point too,” she added. “All of these people were somebody … They were nurses or TV reporters or policemen … they’re still human.”
For Brogan, spreading the holiday cheer is a worthwhile effort, and she would like to see the project grow.
“Just that one minute of seeing somebody happy really makes me feel good,” she said.
Tiverton police are also collecting donations for kids 17 and under. From 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 1, you can bring gift cards or a new and unwrapped toy to Tom’s Market at 492 Main Road and enjoy a cup of hot chocolate.