Vernon County Sheriffs Office Press Release: Christmas for kids with Angel Tree and Sheriff‏

Sheriff calls Angel Tree a “very successful” event:

 Deputy Greg Prough, Sheriff Jason Mosher, Deputy Tycher Blakely just getting ready to feed the children

Christmas for children from the Vernon, Cedar, and Barton County areas was made just a little bit brighter when they received presents, food, and some goodies at the Angel Tree event held at the Church of the Nazarene on Saturday. Angel tree, a prison fellowship ministry, provided Christmas presents with help from the community to children who have a parent in a county jail or prison. But providing them with a gift was not all that was accomplished. When the children arrived, they were greeted by uniformed deputies who each took a child through the line of food that had been cooked by the Sheriff’s Office and helped them fix a plate. The deputies then sat and ate with the children before they received their presents. According to Vernon County Sheriff Jason Mosher, his office decided to combine their Christmas Dinner for Families event with the Angel Tree program after his office was contacted by Angel Tree early in December. “This was a great way to show the children in our community that we are not the bad guys and that we really do care,” said Mosher. 

A deputy giving one of the children a Christmas present during the event

The Sheriff said people from all over the county donated food and money for the event including 54 Café who donated $250 for the purchase of food items and Buzzes BBQ who donated containers for take home meals. “Not only did we have plenty of food for the children and their families who brought them in, but we had lots of food that we were able to send home with them,” said the Sheriff.  Mosher said deputies and their families helped cook the food Saturday morning and they even brought their own children down to eat and play with the other children during the event. The Sheriff is calling this a “very successful” event and hopes to be able to participate again next year. Not only is it an extremely valuable program for these children, but it is a great event that deputies and their families can participate in. Mosher said these kids have all had some type of hardship in their lives, but on that day, each child left with a smile on his or her face.