The Giving Tree was put up in Bertrand Library, outside the Office of Civic Engagement, on Nov. 2. This organization allows students and faculty to give holiday gifts to those in need in Lewisburg and the surrounding communities.

The tree is decorated with snowflake tags that resemble ornaments. However, these tags represent participants requesting a gift. Each tag has the person’s name, age, the gift they wish to receive, and whether they want the gift wrapped or not. The tags also have a letter or number written on them in order to organize the gifts in the sign-out book. Students and faculty can select a tag and fulfill the gift request by Nov. 28.

“I oversee the program, and work with about 18 different agencies where they send me lists of gift requests for their clients. Once we have those requests, they are printed on the tags and hung on the tree. People can select a tag, sign it out, purchase the gift, and bring it to our office for delivery to the agencies. We usually have about 500 tags each year,” Assistant Director for Community Service Lynn Pierson said.

Last year, 16 agencies requested gifts. This year, the Office of Civic Engagement is working with 19 agencies. Some of these agencies include Buffalo Valley Lutheran Village, Danville State Hospital, Elmcroft Assisted Living, Milton YMCA, Salvation Army-Milton, and Warrior Run School District. These agencies have gift recipients ranging in age from a few months old to 100 years old.

“The giving tree is a great way for Bucknell students to give back to the Lewisburg community and help those in need,” Eva Munshower ’20 said.

“Bucknell has been doing this program for about 15 years. For many of the people, this is the only gift they will receive all year, so it very much brightens their holiday,” Pierson said.

The Office of Civic Engagement is open between 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday for people to drop off the purchased gifts. When dropping off gifts, be sure to clearly indicate the identifying letter or number that was used to sign the gift out. This helps to organize the gifts and make their delivery run smoothly.