Kiwanis Club providing Christmas joy

The Kiwanis Club of Zanesville hosted its annual Christmas Party Wednesday afternoon.

Complete with a visit from Santa, 60 area kids from kindergarten to the 6th grade received presents at the party. The gifts included both things the kids want and things they need going into winter.

"The biggest thing that it does for me personally and for our club is to see these kids, see their faces light up," Kiwanis president Jeff Wickerham said. "Some of them this might be their only opportunity to celebrate Christmas. Some of them might not get any presents on Christmas Day, so this is our opportunity to give back to these kids in our community."

The club spends around $60 on presents for each of the kids. Wickerham said they are able to give the gifts to the kids by several fundraisers throughout the year.

"It’s one of the most heart wrenching and touching parts of our Kiwanis year," Wickerham said. "We do have different fundraisers throughout the year because of that we’re able to do this, bring in 60 kids from our community. Giving back to our community is what the kiwanis club is all about."

Wickerham added that it’s wonderful to see the kids light up at the party.