“Shop with a Hero” Provides Christmas Cheer

Medstar Paramedic Mara Gravlin and EMT Keanan Hiltunen shopping with kids at Home Bakery in downtown Davison.

Medstar personnel joined other first responders in Davison and Lapeer to shop with kids in last night’s Shop with a Hero event. Children from the Davison and Lapeer school districts were chosen and paired with Medstar Paramedics and EMTs, police officers and firefighters to shop for Christmas gifts and build positive community relationships.

The Davison event gathered at the First Baptist Church where 30 children were partnered with their heros and given their spending monies. Event sponsors raised $100 per child to spend on gifts for their families or something for themselves. Several businesses had special prizes and free snacks for the busy shoppers. They traveled and shopped they way through downtown Davison, which was beautifully decorated and lit up for the holidays. They returned to the church for pizza, snacks and hot chocolate. There were several gift wrapping stations set up for the everyone to wrap their packages in time or Christmas.

The Lapeer event also featured 30 children. They too were provided money to shop for Christmas gifts at the Lapeer Meijer with their hero. They had a coloring book station and the kids could have their picture taken with Santa Claus. Medstar provided a food basket with all the fixings for a Christmas dinner to the family they were paired with. Everyone had a great time with smiles and toys everywhere!

Medstar Paramedics Haley Chapko, Mara Gravlin, Charles Maes, Kaela Maes and Alexis Melton, along with EMTs Victoria Callard, Garrett Gooch, Keanun Hiltunen and Dispatcher Krystina Parks volunteered their time to spend with the kids during the events.