Who:
Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Christmas Sharing Project
-“Santa’s Shoppers” (Members of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office)

What:
Nearly 100 Pinellas County uniformed sheriff’s deputies and members from across the agency will “Shop For Santa” to assist families registered with the Sheriff’s Christmas Sharing Project, a program which helps families in need over the holidays.

Shoppers will be spending the money earned at the 22nd annual “Ride & Run With the Stars” event which was held at Fort DeSoto Park on Saturday, December 5, 2015. The amount raised this year so far is about $55,000.

Bicycle requests will be filled will the assistance of Bechtel Financial Services and will be delivered to families throughout the holidays.

When:
Shopping will begin at 6:30 a.m. and continue until about 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 16, 2015. Volunteer shoppers will begin to arrive around 6:00 a.m..

Where:
“Shop for Santa” will be held at the Target located at 4450 Park Street North in St. Petersburg.

Why/How:
Uniformed Pinellas County deputies and members from across the agency will be found “elfing” around the BayPines/Tyrone area Target store beginning at 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, December 16th, 2015.

They will have wish lists in hand and shopping carts ready as they “Shop for Santa” and purchase items for children and families being served by the Sheriff’s Christmas Sharing Project.

While toys are mentioned on the wish lists, basic needs items like underwear, socks, a jacket or school clothes usually top the lists provided by the families. The families being served were submitted by Sheriff’s Office members and were screened to determine their level of need.

Bicycle requests will be filled separately with the assistance of Bechtel Financial Services and will be delivered to families throughout the holidays. Approximately 117 bikes will be delivered this year.

Funds for the holiday shopping spree, about $55,000, were earned from this year’s “Ride & Run With the Stars” event that was held on Saturday, December 5, 2015 at Ft. DeSoto Park.

Deputies will be delivering many of the packages in person to deserving families in the coming days.

Media is invited to cover. Please contact the Sheriff’s Public Information Office at (727) 582-6221 for additional information or assistance.