3 generations of giving

As the old car meandered across the unpaved country road, a young, red-haired girl sat in the back seat sandwiched between 20-plus warm, foil-wrapped boxes.

With each bump, dip and pothole the car encountered, a brief gasp and laugh escaped from the young child, as she was momentarily jolted in the air.

The girl, Amy Cole, and her parents were in route to deliver hot Christmas dinners to families in need.

Some 50 years later, Cole is still bringing year-round cheer to Maricopa area residents.

Cole is the leader of the local Salvation Army; it is a position she has held for nearly 30 years and that has been part of her family since 1949. Her great-uncle Ed Green started a branch of the charitable organization in Maricopa to help underprivileged families.

“Back then, everyone in the community pulled together to help one another,” Cole says. “My uncle often led those efforts.”

Green would eventually hand the reins of the local Salvation Army to Cole’s father, Fred, who would then pass the baton to Amy in 1986. “Helping others is a family tradition,” she says.

The first year she took over the organization Cole enlisted the help of her friend Barbara Pietrzak, and the two sorted toys for children in the backyard of Amy’s mother’s house.

“I remember sitting in the backyard separating those toys in the freezing cold and drinking hot chocolate,” Pietrzak says.

Since then, the toy drive has grown significantly. Last Christmas Cole and others handed out toys to more than 650 children. “No child should have to go without Christmas,” she says.

Cole starts signing up recipient families for the Christmas program in September. To be eligible, a family must fall below the national poverty guidelines and provide proof of residence and income.

Despite the ease of enrolling in the program, Cole says many families are still reluctant to ask for help.

“One year I had this high school senior come to me and say, ‘Amy, can you help my parents?’”

The girl’s parents had been laid off from their jobs and were unable to make their house payment. On top of that, a relative had just abandoned her children with the family.

After talking with the girl and agreeing to help her family, Cole met with the father and mother. “They were in tears because they were so embarrassed to have to ask for anything,” Cole says. 

The family made a financial recovery after that tough Christmas, which was brightened by the gifts the Salvation Army provided, and now return each year to help Cole hand out gifts to other families. “Not many people come back to help after receiving help. When they do though, it is extra rewarding,” says Cole.

To deal with the growing demand of those in need , Cole has worked feverishly the past 10 years to form partnerships with Harrah’s, Fiesta Grande RV Park in Casa Grande, Pinal County Sheriff’s Office and others.

“Without help from these great partners, we could not do what we do,” she says.

While the partnerships help maintain toy supplies, another holiday tradition provides cash to help needy families. For the past seven-plus years, Cole has stood in front of Maricopa grocery stores ringing the famous Salvation Army bell, collecting donations in a red container. 

While she has witnessed countless people drop their spare change, paper currency and even checks in the red bucket, the memory of one particular donor always warms Cole’s heart.

Three years ago, Cole, dressed up as Santa Claus, was ringing her bell in front of Fry’s Marketplace when a child caught her eye.

The 10-year-old boy appeared to be recovering from a traumatic head surgery. As the boy approached, Cole prepared to hand him a candy cane and wish him Merry Christmas, but the boy’s mother stopped him and pulled him out of view.

Seconds later, he returned with a check for $100 that went in the bucket.

The next year, ringing the bell in the same location but not dressed as Santa, Cole saw the boy again.

“I gave him a candy cane and he gave me another $100 check,” she says. “I told him I would put in a good word with Santa for him, and I have never seen a child get so excited.”

When Cole is not helping bring Christmas cheer to Maricopans, she works as a public health nurse in Casa Grande.

“Amy has always been there any time help was needed,” says longtime Maricopa resident and Salvation Army volunteer Mary Lou Smith. “She is a wonderful person.”