Log in

Business

Angel trees provide plenty for veterans

More than 1,700 gifts donated

Posted 1/10/21

The Northwest Valley community showed its generosity during the annual angel tree program offered by the SunDome Merchants and Corte Bella Vets.

You must be a member to read this story.

Join our family of readers for as little as $5 per month and support local, unbiased journalism.


Already have an account? Log in to continue.

Current print subscribers can create a free account by clicking here

Otherwise, follow the link below to join.

To Our Valued Readers –

Visitors to our website will be limited to five stories per month unless they opt to subscribe. The five stories do not include our exclusive content written by our journalists.

For $6.99, less than 20 cents a day, digital subscribers will receive unlimited access to YourValley.net, including exclusive content from our newsroom and access to our Daily Independent e-edition.

Our commitment to balanced, fair reporting and local coverage provides insight and perspective not found anywhere else.

Your financial commitment will help to preserve the kind of honest journalism produced by our reporters and editors. We trust you agree that independent journalism is an essential component of our democracy. Please click here to subscribe.

Sincerely,
Charlene Bisson, Publisher, Independent Newsmedia

Please log in to continue

Log in
I am anchor
Business

Angel trees provide plenty for veterans

More than 1,700 gifts donated

Posted

The Northwest Valley community showed its generosity during the annual angel tree program offered by the SunDome Merchants and Corte Bella Vets.

More than 1,700 gifts were provided from the tags on angel trees placed in front of Safeway, Icon Superstore, Hole-In-One and Bob’s Variety Store in the SunDome Shopping Center, 13519 W. Camino del Sol, Sun City West. In addition, the Corte Bella Vets donated $2,000 in gift cards, in $25 incements, to be distrubuted to veterans.

Jim Starkman, Corte Bella Vets charity director, described how he pulled up to the Plaza Cleaners to discover another SUV full of presents for area veterans. He loaded them up and headed over to the Icon Superstore where he met volunteers from the Corte Bella Vets who then walked them up to the sorting area.

“This is the third year in which the Corte Bella Vets have worked jointly with the SunDome Merchants to collect gifts for our Veterans; and each year we have experienced an increase in the numbers of gifts collected,’ Mr. Starkman said.

However, he shared he has never seen so much generosity as in the 2020 program. Gifts included handmade knitted hats, afghans and throws.

“It was evident that the residents of Sun City West wanted to do something special for our veterans,” Mr. Starkman said.

But it was also a Northwest Valley effort as gifts were provided by Sun City, Surprise and Peoria residents gave their support to the program and veterans who are in transition homes, a VA hospital and a long-term VA community living center. Gifts were delivered to Mary Ellen’s Place, James Walton Home, VA Hospital/Community Living Centers in Phoenix and in Prescott.

Mr. Starkman said feedback received from the VA Hospital/Community Living Center in Phoenix was that gift giving was a wonderful experience.

“So many veterans were extremely touched by the number of gifts they received, the beautiful quality of the items and all the special attention that was given to selecting the perfect gifts for them,” he explained. “Some of the veterans had tears in their eyes and it really helped to lift morale in a huge way!”

The angel tree projects begins during the summer months with the printing and stringing of the tags and ends in late December with the two-day delivery of all the gifts.