BANGOR, Maine — The Bangor Elves set up clothing racks filled with winter jackets and tables covered with hats, gloves and scarves, as well as food and personal hygiene items in Pickering Square and a crowd of locals got to select whatever they wanted.
“I didn’t know this was going on until I got off the bus,” said Jessica Paradis of Bangor, who had her two small children in tow.
The family selected a few items from the tables while the Bangor Elves, a group of anonymous do-gooders who have spent the last six years secretly spreading holiday cheer each Christmas season, restocked the racks and tables with items donated or purchased by the group.
Several secret Santa groups of Bangor Elves were dispatched to do good deeds Saturday morning.
“They started at a restaurant and gave a big tip to someone,” a newbie Bangor Elf, who was wearing a set of reindeer horns on her head, said. “We went to Dunkin’ Donuts and there were five people there so we gave each $5.”
“Another group in Brewer is doing random acts of kindness and good deeds,” another Bangor Elf working downtown piped in. One group visited Goodwill and another gave quarters out at the Laundry Basket, both in Bangor.
The Bangor Elves are asking others to be a part of “a day of good deeds.”
“Basically, we’re asking them to pay it forward,” a veteran Bangor Elf said.
Bake cookies for or visit a neighbor, donate items to an animal shelter or smile at everyone you meet were suggested ways to pay it forward.
“One guy just wanted to receive Christmas cards, so we’re sending him a bunch of signed cards,” one Elf said. “It seems like what we do is so small, but [the response] is huge.”
Those who do good deeds have been posting their actions on the Bangor Elves Facebook page.
“We hope you all join in the fun wherever you are and in any way you chose,” the page states.
While downtown, a woman dropped off three pairs of gloves she had purchased from Old Navy that went directly from her hands to the table.
The group has selected four people to be recipients of their version of the “12 Days of Christmas,” starting Sunday, where they deliver small gifts to locals for 12 days that follow the theme of the Christmas song.
“It’s not about the gift,” the veteran elf said. “It’s that someone is thinking about them.”
For recipients such as Paradis, the gifts are a welcomed surprise.
“I think it’s great, especially this time of year,” she said.