COVID-19 is bringing a new -- even positive -- experience to a longtime volunteer with the Lake County Food Pantry.
For 28 years, Lana Johnson has helped to ensure children in Lake County have a merry Christmas by coordinating efforts to get Angel Trees up in three Madison locations. She even purchases gifts for some of the children herself.
"I love kids," she explained. "I feel for people who aren't as blessed as I have been."
However, she has never had the opportunity to look into the faces of those who receive gifts and food boxes through the Food Pantry's efforts. That will change this year.
On Saturday, she will be at the Downtown Armory when food baskets and gifts are distributed to families between 9 a.m. and noon. A drive-thru system is being used to reduce the risk involved in continuing this holiday tradition during a pandemic.
"It will be fun to have that contact with them," she said.
Johnson said her involvement with the Angel Tree program began when she was invited to serve on the Food Pantry board as a representative from Trinity Lutheran Church. The prior representatives, a couple, had asked her to replace them.
The decision wasn't hard for her to make.
"I want to help people who are struggling, to make a difference with people," she said.
Growing up in Oldham with four younger brothers, she learned from her parents the importance of generosity, of showing God's love for all His people by helping them.
"They taught us to care about other people and to give to other people," she said. "It's always been a big part of my life."
Her love for children has been equally important. She grew up helping to care for younger brothers. By the time she was in high school, she was teaching Sunday School.
That love has continued. After graduating from high school, she completed a secretarial course at Dakota State College and went to work for a firm of CPAs prior to obtaining a position with the Farm Service Agency, where she worked for 28 years.
During most of those years, she has taught Sunday School, usually 3-year-olds but occasionally younger elementary school children. She is now employed as a classroom aide with the Head Start program, which operates under the umbrella of Inter-Lakes Community Action Partnership.
"I love working with kids," Johnson said.
She said the children with whom she works often ask her if she has children. She has an answer for their question.
"I tell the kids at Head Start they're my kids. That's how I feel about all the kids I taught at Sunday School, too," she noted.
Johnson is quick to point out that she's not the only one involved in making the Angel Tree program a success. She said that Nancy Riedel, who helps to set up the trees with Johnson, has been doing it as long as she has. In addition, several other people help each year.
"I get my crew together and set the times for setting up the trees and notify the paper," she said.
Not all of the angels are put on the trees when they are set up.
"They print them in batches," Johnson explained. "They give us enough to get started."
Others on the Food Pantry board check the trees and put out additional angels. This year, 538 angels were hung on the trees located at Gary's Bakery, the Madison Public Library and Montgomery's Furniture. Each child's name was put up twice -- once indicating a clothing item and once listing a toy or similar item.
Johnson said that younger children's names go quickly. However, all children will receive two gifts, whether someone selects the child's angels or not.
"We'll go out and buy gifts for any angels that aren't taken," Johnson said. They are often assisted in this by local businesses or organizations.
"There's always someone who steps up at the last minute," she said.
Despite the financial hardship many experience this year as a result of the pandemic, people have been eager to step up to help.
"When we put the Angel Tree up at the library, we didn't even have the tree up and we had people looking through the angels," Johnson said.
She is looking forward to seeing those who benefit from that generosity on Saturday when boxes and gifts are distributed.
"I think it's going to be kind of neat," she said.
