Sheehan owns two local franchises of national home care company Home Instead, one in Duncansville and another in Bedford, which serve as her bases of operation for the Be a Santa to a Senior gift drive.

The Be a Santa program is Home Instead’s annual holiday effort, where individual franchises partner with local businesses to collect gift baskets for senior citizens, who may not receive Christmas gifts otherwise.

Sheehan provides each business with a small Christmas tree to display in their storefront, complete with paper ornaments. Those wishing to participate take an ornament from the tree, buy items that are suggested and assemble the gift bag. Filled bags were collected from mid-November through Dec. 13.

Each bag contains three to five fun and practical items such as fleece blankets, wool socks, sudoku puzzle books and toiletries.

Bishop Guilfoyle Academy students (from left) Morgan Ruggery, Hannah Homan and Lyla Steward watch Hilltop Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center resident Julia Thomas open her gifts. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

Sheehan, alongside her husband, Cullen, and sons, Aidan and Carter, has operated the Blair County Be a Santa effort every year since she purchased the Duncansville franchise in 2022.

According to Sheehan, it was a “no brainer” to participate in Be a Santa after she bought the business.

“I’ve seen firsthand how loneliness sets in, especially at this time of year, especially at the senior care facilities; we’re not immune to it here, it’s a national problem,” Sheehan said.

To combat this issue, Be a Santa strives to provide these seniors some of the comforts they enjoyed at home before they moved into the care facility, she said.

The Be a Santa program loosely resembles the Marine Corps Reserve’s Toys for Tots gift drive, Sheehan said, but with a focus on seniors and practical gifts instead of toys.

Bishop Guilfoyle Academy’s Grant Okonak and other students carry gifts into the facility. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

“You can provide Christmas to a senior for $10 if you’re a smart shopper,” Sheehan said.

This low cost of entry allows almost anyone to donate if they want, Sheehan said.

“You can buy a fleece blanket for $5 at Five Below or any vendor, or you can buy a bottle of body wash or a word search book at the dollar store — it’s that cheap.”

The contents of most filled bags total about $30, she said, although some donors go above and beyond with their gift-buying, requiring the team to break down the overflowing bag into two moderately sized bags.

The success of Be a Santa is in large part thanks to the partner businesses that spread the word about the program, Sheehan said.

“Without our vendor partners, this wouldn’t work, because we don’t get a lot of foot traffic (at our Duncansville location),” she said. “Our vendor partners are critical because they get foot traffic of people visiting their locations whether it’s to pick up their medications or grab dinner and grab a bulb.”

Be a Santa currently works with more than 20 local businesses, including Deja Brew in Bedford, Jethro’s in Altoona and 1st Summit Bank in Johnstown.

The program has grown steadily, Sheehan said, especially since she bought a second location in Bedford in 2024, which allowed her to expand the geographic reach of the gifting endeavor.

In 2022, Sheehan said her team delivered about 200 gift bags, and is on track to deliver nearly 650 this year.

These bags go to seniors who live in one of several nursing homes across the region, including the Preserve at Cedarwood, Bedford Post Acute and John Paul II Manor.

On Monday, Sheehan and her group of volunteers delivered gifts to five nursing homes spread across Tyrone, Altoona and Bedford, including Hilltop Healthcare and Rehabilitation.

The volunteer corps was composed of about 20 Bishop Guilfoyle students — Aidan Sheehan’s classmates — dressed in elf, snowman and Santa costumes — and a handful of Home Instead employees.

The group went door-to-door in the facility, distributing gift bags and wishing residents a merry Christmas.

According to LPN Ashley Mastrine, the residents at Hilltop always enjoy their Be a Santa gifts, especially creature comforts like a high-quality blanket. These “kind gestures” do not go unnoticed or unappreciated by the residents and staff, she said.

The holiday season can be a lonely experience for some residents, Mastrine said, since their family may not live near enough to visit, so the volunteers from Be a Santa are an uplifting sight.

Hilltop makes an effort to decorate the D Wing for each holiday, Mastrine said, and the annual Be a Santa stop is part of their tradition.

Some residents sit by the doors of their rooms to see Sheehan’s group arrive.

The residents always enjoy “seeing a new face” beyond their daily care team, especially if their family visits are infrequent, CNA Tonya Pruznak said.

“It helps us both out, the residents and (the staff),” Pruznak said. “Since they’re in a good mood, we’re in a good mood.”

Expansion plans

Angie Leonard is the office manager at the Home Instead location in Bedford. She jumped on board when Sheehan asked her new staff to participate in the Be a Santa drive.

Now, Leonard’s office is knee-deep with dozens of brightly colored gift bags spilling out from every available surface.

“People have just been amazing at filling bags,” Leonard said. A handful of local businesses even had to ask Leonard for a restock of ornaments because customers picked up all of their original supply, she said.

After three successful years in Blair and now Bedford counties, Sheehan said she is excited to grow Be a Santa further and expand their outreach in Huntingdon County in 2025.

“We reach to almost the Maryland state line,” Sheehan said. With the new office in Bedford, Sheehan said she plans to use the new capacity to include more seniors in the Be a Santa program.

“It’s been really amazing watching the community jump in and help out,” Leonard said.

Mirror Staff Writer Conner Goetz is at 814-946-7535.