Children are the beneficiaries of many holiday programs, but often times people forget about isolated and lonely seniors who also need to be remembered during the holiday season.

Many seniors in our area are widowed, have lost close friends as they age, and are separated from family. Several are also suffering from ill health, and many are on fixed incomes and don’t have a lot of extra money to spend this season.

With the “Be a Santa for a Senior” program gift shoppers can pick a senior’s name off of a Christmas tree in the Frisco Station Mall. The gifts they buy for the seniors will be distributed later by volunteers.

The program isn’t just about gift giving. It’s also designed to help stimulate human contact and social interaction for elderly adults who are unlikely to have guests during the holidays.

"We tell all the people that are volunteering to do the delivery to set aside some time, you know, that if you have 30 or 60 minutes in order to make this a worthwhile heartwarming time for you as well as the senior,” explains Kristine Stanley, the franchise owner of "Home Instead Senior Care."

Last year volunteers delivered gifts to 125 area seniors. This year they’re hoping to deliver even more. They’ll need help with wrapping and delivering the presents.

If you’d like to help, there will be a community gift wrapping party on December 10th at the Home Instead Senior Care office in the Frisco Station mall. The group could use monetary donations for wrapping paper and other tools.

The gifts will be delivered December 10th through the 17th. For more information on how you can help call 479-936-9885.