Most people probably don’t think much about the Goodfellows until they hold their annual newspaper sales drive at Christmas time, but the group at Orion Township Fire Station #3 is busy serving the Gingellville area year-round.
The Goodfellows from Station #3 will sell the Dec. 1st Goodfellows edition of The Lake Orion Review in Ginglleville on Dec. 4, and have been helping out residents in that area for the past 38 years.
‘We help needy families with clothes, shoes, food…anything they need,? said David Ostertag, chairman of the Station #3 Goodfellows. ‘We get anonymous recommendations about families in the Gingellville area who need help, and then we do interviews.?
The Goodfellows then gather with volunteers at Station #3, located on Gregory Road just off Baldwin Road in Gingellville, on Christmas Eve to assemble food baskets, wrap gifts and then deliver them to the families.
‘The whole idea is based on the children,? Ostertag said of how the Goodfellows organization began. ‘It was traditionally done through fire stations, and they would deliver the stuff on the fire trucks. We don’t do that anymore.?
The Goodfellows from Station #3 help families all year long, not just during the Christmas season.
‘We pay electric and gas bills, if they need it,? Ostertag said. ‘All the money that’s donated stays in the community.?
The Station #3 Goodfellows have 25-30 members who regularly help out 18-25 area families every year.
‘We get donations from area businesses, and for any size donation, they get a business card displayed on the front page of the Goodfellows Orion Review,? Ostertag said.
‘The newspapers will be sold the first Saturday in December, and the proceeds, along with donations, goes towards helping families who are less fortunate,? he said.
So when you are out and about on Saturday, Dec. 4, don’t forget to watch for the Station #3 Goodfellows selling The Orion Review in the Gingellville area.