Everyone can play Santa Claus at Modesto's Vintage Fair Mall

This Christmas, young Hailey Salha is trying a new approach.

She knows firsthand that it’s fun to shop for babies and little kids who might not get many other presents. That’s what she’s always done, every year, after visiting with her family the Soroptimist Christmas Tree at Vintage Faire Mall.

Now 13, it occurs to Hailey that no one knows better what another 13-year-old might appreciate most. She envisions what that girl might want to read, what sort of nail polish she might like, which shirts and makeup would help her feel pretty.

“She’s got to be stylish,” Hailey said, her dark eyes dancing, picturing the stores she would soon visit, clutching a gift tag taken from a bough of one of the most inspirational trees in Modesto.

The tag bore the first name of a needy 13-year-old girl whom Hailey would likely never meet, along with a short list of her needs and wants.

The information had been gathered by someone at a local school or service agency and passed to the two Modesto Soroptimist clubs, whose volunteers clothespin tags to the tree. It stands on the mall’s upper level just outside Forever 21, across from the food court, and it will be there until Dec. 18.

“It’s in keeping with the spirit of this time of year,” said Steve Ensley of Modesto, snagging a tree tag. “A, it makes you feel good, and B, you’re doing something for somebody who otherwise might not have much.”

Like Lillian, 9, who needs a warm jacket and dreams of being a cheerleader. Or Samuel, who needs shoes and craves a skateboard. Trinity, 13, could use socks and maybe a purse, while Brayden’s parents would appreciate Pull-Ups for a 35-pounder.

As tags are claimed by shoppers, volunteers working four-hour shifts replace them on the tree from a stack of thousands, as they have for three decades. Yes, the tree is 30 years old – not this actual tree, but the event that has become a holiday shopping ritual for so many.

The fact it has lasted this long ought to “tell people that this is such a stable and rewarding project,” said JoAnn Found, public awareness chairwoman for the Christmas tree, now a standalone 501(c)(3) nonprofit entity. Co-sponsors, with the Soroptimist clubs, are KHOP 95.1 and the mall.

Other longtime returnees are Modesto’s John and Anita Kennedy, who 10 years ago stumbled on the tree while shopping after moving from the Bay Area. On Sunday, these grandparents of five came away from the tree with five tags, all with one thing in common: that the child wants a bicycle. John takes care of that “want,” while Anita covers the “need.”

“We know what it is for our grandchildren to open presents at Christmas,” Anita said.

Bicycles can be pricey. That’s precisely why John buys them.

“It’s probably something they’ll never get,” he said. “We’ve been fortunate in our lives ...”

“... And sharing that fortune with others, especially children,” Anita Kennedy said, finishing the thought, “is what we do.”

Are families on the receiving end grateful?

“Yesterday as I opened my gift from you, I felt relieved,” reads a handwritten note posted at a kiosk next to the tree. “Too often I see humanity acting selfishly, so much so that it’s easy to lose hope in the human spirit. But your gift was a reminder of the innate goodness I believe is found in every human heart.”

After checking in with a volunteer, shoppers leave with a list and return later with unwrapped items that are screened, wrapped off site by more volunteers and picked up by the schools or service agencies requesting help for specific children. If one child in a family gets something, sponsors make sure his or her siblings do too, so no one’s left out.

And every child in the program gets something, even if not all tags are claimed, because sponsors accept cash donations to cover that. Checks can be sent to P.O. Box 1353, Modesto, 95353, or by visiting http://www.simodesto.com/?p=723; the tax ID number is 77-0435675.

Gift options can get picked over by mid-December, so Hailey’s family came early this year; it went up only Saturday.

“Last year I had an 18-month old,” said Taylor, her 11-year-old sister. She recalled telling people, “He’s so cute. Wait – I never saw him!”

That anonymity on both ends helps protect all involved, Found said.

The girls’ mother, Elizabeth Sahla, said, “This helps us know what Christmas is about.”

This story was originally published November 22, 2015 at 5:30 PM with the headline "Everyone can play Santa Claus at Modesto's Vintage Fair Mall."