Lori Coats, from now until Dec. 24, will wrap holiday gifts at The Oaks Mall for charity.
Coats, 44, and other members of the Pentecostal Church of Gainesville wrap gifts with paper, bows, ribbons, bags and tissue paper near the mall’s Cinnabon to support organizations within their church including Women of Worth, Revolution Youth, Soul Mates Marriage Group, Senior Saints and Housekeeping and Bible Quizzers, she said.
“We love providing a service to Gainesville,” Coats said. “It’s a great town.”
The volunteers from the church took a class on gift wrapping the week before they opened their annual sale at the mall, Coats said. The prices for wrapping range from $1.50 to $7, depending on size.
The group raised $200 the first day, said Caitlyn Toney, 19, a church member and Indiana Bible College worship studies and music sophomore.
Toney’s parents are the pastors of the church, and her mother taught the gift wrapping class.
“This is what my church does. It’s a good way to gain fellowship with people within the church and out,” she said. “Plus, Christmas is my favorite holiday.”
Yamalie White, 38, was leaving the mall with gifts she had bought when she noticed the church’s stand and gave them T-shirts for her children and an electric grill for her boyfriend to wrap.
“I couldn’t miss out on this,” she said. “I just don’t do gift wrapping at home. It’s too much of a hassle.”
