A dispatch of holiday cheer
Black Mountain Police Department delivers gifts to local families
Fred McCormick
The Valley Echo
December 22, 2021
Black Mountain Police Chief Steve Parker, left, Lieutenant Joe Kidd, middle, and Officer Brad DeMuth prepare to deliver presents to families in the Swannanoa Valley on Dec. 21. Photo by Fred McCormick
The sky above the Black Mountain Police Department was dark and grey on Dec. 21, as the cold weather heralded the arrival of winter.
With only four days until Christmas, however, the shortest day of the year was about to get brighter for several local families.
Black Mountain Police Chief Steve Parker, Lieutenant Joe Kidd and Officer Brad DeMuth loaded boxes of wrapped gifts into the bed of the department’s black Dodge Ram, as the trio prepared to deliver them to eight Swannanoa Valley families. Twenty children would have presents to open on Christmas morning, and parents received a $100 gift card to Ingles.
“Thanks to donations from local businesses, we were able to provide gifts for these families,” said Kidd, a 17-year veteran of the department who has been one of the organizers of the annual fundraiser since it began in 2017. “The generosity of these businesses and private donors also allowed us to distribute meals to 12 local families for Thanksgiving.”
Officers raised money for the holiday initiative through sponsorships for No-Shave November, which allows department personnel to grow beards during the last three months of the year. Nearly a dozen businesses and private donors contributed to the campaign.
Black Mountain Police Officer Brad DeMuth carries a box of gifts to one of eight homes visited by the department on Dec. 21. Photo by Fred McCormick
“It really does two things,” Kidd said. “It raises money for an important cause, and it gets some of our officers out there interacting with members of the community they may not see on a regular basis. It’s something we look forward to every year.”
The department received a list of families who needed support from the Swannanoa Valley Christian Ministry, and identified others through additional community partnerships, according to Kidd. Staff purchased gifts based on each child’s wish lists and wrapped them in the department’s training room on Dec. 18.
The Black Mountain Police Department delivers gifts to a local family, four days before Christmas. The department’s annual holiday fundraiser, supported by donations from local businesses and citizens, provided gifts for 20 children in the Swannanoa Valley. Photo by Fred McCormick
The majority of the presents were delivered to families from Padgettown Road to Swannanoa by Kidd, Parker and DeMuth, Tuesday afternoon.
“We’re thankful to all of the businesses and citizens who supported this program this year,” Parker said. “We could not have done this without them.”
The Black Mountain Police Department would like to thank the following businesses and private donors for supporting its effort to help area families in need:
My Father’s Pizza
Jerry Morris - State Farm Insurance Agent
Cut’n Up Barber Shop
Precision Graphics
Hunters & Treasures
Valley Trucking
Chance & Kelly Hensley
Royce Publications, Inc.
Western Carolina Custom Casework
Bobby & Rhonda Ammonds
Mary Harper
Anonymous donors