The spirit of the holiday season was felt by children throughout Lake County as the city of Clearlake sponsored our third annual Christmas Wish Tree for children under the care of Child Protective Services and Lake Family Resource Center.

Our Wish Tree twinkled with the site of 208 ornaments, each with a child’s ID number, gender, age and the child’s wish for Christmas. Within a few short weeks, all 208 of these children’s wishes were granted through the warmhearted generosity of many individuals, businesses and organizations.

Volunteers and city staff volunteered their time to work inspirationally towards the goal of giving children the opportunity to feel the joy of the season. Children who never imagined their Christmas wishes could come true felt the outpouring of kindness this holiday season thanks to the caring of many people. The outpouring of how communities opened their hearts to these children is overwhelming given the stress and anxiety of the present economy.

The wishes of children were in array from toys, bicycles, skateboards, I-Pods and just about anything a child could dream of. It was heartfelt that for some of these children, Christmas wishes encumbered warm clothing and necessities for daily needs.

The wishes of these children twinkled in our hearts, as members of our communities came into City Hall, one by one, to make wishes come true. Monetary donations were also generously received from organizations, businesses and many individuals throughout the community. Our local media compassing newspapers, online news, radio and TV 8, contributed their outreach to the community, helping us to reach our goal. The success of our Christmas wish tree was truly a joint effort by many.

On their designated day, our sponsored agencies arrived at City Hall to pick up the gifts and begin their joyful and sometimes emotional tasks of distributing the gifts to our children. Hundreds of gifts filled the lobby of City Hall. Not only did the eyes twinkle of many who saw and felt the spirit of the Wish Tree, but also there were tears reflecting the emotions of fulfilling a child’s wish. Not only did we touch the lives of these children; these children touched our lives as well. It was unspoken as we each rekindled the blessings we have in our own lives.

It is heartfelt for me to humbly have the honor of saying on behalf of the City of Clearlake, a very sincere thank you to all of the many individuals, businesses and organizations that helped fulfill the wishes of children through our Christmas Wish Tree.

I believe the efforts of everyone who helped fulfill the wishes of these children can best be expressed by the words of Forest Witcraft. “A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world many be different because I was important in the life of a child.”

Judy Thein is mayor of the city of Clearlake.