Media Advisory: Indianapolis Fire Department
Date: Wednesday December 11, 2019
Please join us for this great media opportunity:
Saturday December 14, 2019
Local 416 Union Hall – 748 Massachusetts Ave
7:00 – Children Arrive
7:30 – Board Buses/Head to JC Penney Greenwood Park Mall
8:00 – 10:00 Shop at JC Penney Greenwood Park Mall
10:30 – Return to Hall for Cookies and Santa
Fill the Bell to Clothe-A-Child organizers are available to appear on morning news shows if desired. Please let me know.
Indianapolis Firefighters will spend the morning celebrating an early Christmas with 50 area children, eating breakfast, shopping for clothes and visiting with Santa. Each year as part of the IFD Clothe-A-Child program, children in need of assistance are assigned an IFD Firefighter, who helps them shop for a warm coat, clothes for school and new shoes for the winter. The day starts early with the children arriving at the Indianapolis Professional Firefighters Union Hall at 7:00 am where they are given a hearty breakfast, cooked firehouse style, by IFD firefighters. After breakfast, the kids and firefighters board buses, graciously donated by Free Enterprise and head to Greenwood Park Mall where they will shop at JC Penney Department Store. A second year partner, JC Penney makes shopping fun and easy, graciously opening their doors early for the group to shop. About $10,000 is spent outfitting the 50 children every year. Once the shopping is complete, the buses return the children and firefighters to the Union Hall where they visit with Santa and open a gift.
Many of the firefighters are joined at this event, each year, by their families, teaching their own children the value of helping others, especially during the holidays. Firefighters, children and spouses make this truly a family affair.
The IFD Clothe-A-Child program is solely funded by donations through specific gifts and the Fill the Bell Program. Clothe- A-Child began in the 1940’s as the Mile-O-Dimes campaign in conjunction with the Indianapolis Times Newspaper. When the Times ceased publication in 1965, the IFD established the Fill the Bell to Clothe-A-Child Program and has been an IFD charity for over 54 years.
Firefighters are “standing the bell” for the two weeks prior to Christmas (Dec. 7-23) both at Circle Center Mall (3rd Floor) and Castleton Square Mall (Macy’s) from 10 am to 8 pm daily. Please stop by and say hello to your IFD Firefighters and help next year’s children with your spare change.
