Stuffed animals are among the gifts that Adopt an Angel will distribute to children in Child Protective Services in Alameda County.

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Filling wishes of abused kids

as each holiday season nears, Georgia Butterfield goes into command mode worthy of a five-star general. Her goal: to amass enough gifts so that each of the more than 1,000 neglected kids in southern Alameda County has more than one thing to open Christmas morning.

``The children are victims,'' says Georgia of the youngsters who have been abused to the point where it has been necessary to place them in protective custody. ``To waken on Christmas morning to an empty tree -- if you even have a tree -- is simply not right. They have too much trauma and sadness in their lives not to have a visit from Santa.''

Arranging that visit takes some doing. And it takes a lot of volunteers who are dedicated to the mission of Adopt an Angel, the non-profit organization that has been making the holidays brighter for thousands of kids since 1987.

Alameda County Child Protective Services provides Adopt an Angel with the names, sizes and gift wishes of each child. The next task is to get people to donate money or gifts to make it all happen.

The requests can be heartbreaking. This year, 7-year-old Rhiannon dreams about ``a pretty party dress and pink or blue party shoes.'' Little Patty, age 2, wishes for a Spanish-speaking Elmo doll. Others want items most of us take for granted. Paul, 13, and his brother Jimmy, 12, want shoes and sweatshirts. Requests for socks, bedding and school supplies are not uncommon.

Georgia makes it her job to see that each child gets more than one present and that the distribution is equitable. In addition to giving out necessities, the Angels try to spread around the ``fun'' presents.

A donation of $25 (11A) will pay for gifts for one child. A gift of $5 (11B) will provide wrapping and tape for about 15 presents. Ribbons were eliminated a couple of years ago because they just got in the way or fell off. Besides, kids who are simply thrilled to have a gift or two to open on Christmas morning just rip them off anyway.