Rotary Club starting third year of Secret Santa donations

The Clarion Rotary Club takes part in many local and international service projects, ranging from hosting a lemonade stand at Festival in the Park, providing a scholarship for high school seniors, selling cookies at basketball games, to packing infant health bags, sponsoring exchange students and education for the underprivileged, and helping fund the Backpack Program in Clarion. For the past two years, they’ve taken on another special project for Christmastime: their Secret Santa project in cooperation with local law enforcement.

This third year of the project, the club hopes to be able to raise about $1,000 that law enforcement officers can surprise Clarion area residents with as a gift. “They may pull you over and hand you a $20 bill,” said Sherri O’Brien, Rotary Club President.

Club members are beginning fundraising for the Secret Santa project now. The money raised is split between the Sheriff’s office and the Clarion Police Department, who divide it in envelopes for the officers and deputies to hand out, typically looking for people they know could use a little help around the holidays. “We put usually about $20 in each envelope, or more,” said Steve TerHark, Clarion Police Chief.

To learn more about the Secret Santa project, see the December 8 edition of the Monitor.