Christmas Clearing Council to Participate in Waukesha Christmas Parade

WAUKESHA, WIS. — Christmas Clearing Council of Waukesha County (CCC) announced its plans to participate in the annual Waukesha Christmas parade on Sunday, November 22 at 4:00 p.m. The organization will enter a float in the parade and hold a major toy drive, sponsored by the Waukesha Business Improvement District, on the day of the event. The group will also be selling their 60th anniversary commemorative cookbook and signing up sponsors for local families in need at various locations in downtown Waukesha on parade day.

Students from alternative high school Second Chance School in New Berlin will build the CCC float with the help of Cooper Power Systems employees. Members of Students Against Destructive Decisions (S.A.D.D.) from Waukesha North High School will walk in the parade alongside the float and will make baked treats for the event.

CCC is encouraging the public to bring new, unwrapped toys to donate if they are planning to attend the parade. CCC will be collecting toys for its annual Toy Shop, selling its commemorative cookbooks which features holiday recipes and CCC history at $20 each, offering free samples of treats from the book and signing up sponsors at a storefront located at 840 N. Grand in Waukesha from 12 p.m. until 4 p.m.

The storefront space, donated by Berg Management Company, will feature decorations with a Candy Land theme. The popular board game is also celebrating its 60th anniversary this year and is the most donated item in CCC’s annual Toy Shop for children in need.

“Our Candy Land storefront will be a fun destination for families on parade day. It’s also a great opportunity for families to help children in need by donating toys, sponsoring a family for Christmas or purchasing a cookbook,” said Ruth Page Jones, CCC’s executive director. “Kids who stop by with a toy to donate will receive candy in return.”

CCC will also be participating in the local author event, Author Mania, at Cuddles and Martha Merrell’s Bookstore at 231 W. Main Street in Waukesha from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. on parade day. The group will be selling commemorative cookbooks signed by Ann Ulatt, a former CCC director featured in the book. CCC president, Claire Beglinger, will also be on hand at the bookstore event.

In addition, the Waukesha County Historical Society and Museum, 101 W. Main Street, Waukesha, will be selling copies of the commemorative cookbook and collecting new, unwrapped toys for CCC’s Toy Shop from 12 p.m. until 4:00 p.m. on the day of the parade.

Celebrating its 60th anniversary this year, CCC is a nonprofit group that matches needy families with individuals and groups who want to help on a person-to-person basis during the holiday season. Families who are not matched with sponsors are invited to CCC's annual Toy Shop, stocked with donated items, to shop for their children. In 2008, more than 4,600 Waukesha County children from about 2,000 families experienced the joy of the holiday season because of the efforts of CCC and its volunteers, donors and sponsors. CCC was recently awarded honorable mention as the “Small Non-Profit of the Year” by the Waukesha County Executive’s office.

For more information about CCC’s 2009 toy drop-off locations, volunteering or sponsoring a family, call (262) 549-NOEL (6635) or visit www.christmasclearingcouncil.org.