Tinian Santa may cancel gift-giving this year

Remember the kindhearted lady who has been playing the role of Santa Claus among children on Tinian for the past two Christmases?

Maïa, who prefers to be called by her lowercased first name, said yesterday that she might cancel the third annual Christmas giveaway that was originally scheduled to be held at the maia’s Books & Donation Center from Dec. 15-22.

Maïa founded the Center and runs the program at her home by herself.

Now 70 years old, maïa said that, without help, she is unable to handle the many needy families who should be receiving the vouchers for the free children’s gifts.

Because of this, she said, she is reluctantly considering canceling the event.

If she does cancel the event, she will still be faced with the problem of what to do with the 200 Christmas gifts that she has already obtained from generous donors abroad and from local people who have donated.

The Division of Youth Services used to help maïa with the distribution of the vouchers in previous years but hasn’t done so this year due to the absence of Director Lillian Cepeda, who is on leave.

Maïa said the current division head has not been able to provide her “with needed information on the number of children to be ‘gifted’ and seems incapable of handling the priority rating of the vouchers, as well.”

Saipan Tribune called the DYS office several times yesterday afternoon but no one answered the phone.

For the past three years, maïa has been providing free books, clothes, shoes, and all kinds of other necessities to those in need, but she said her many attempts to obtain recognition and support from the local administration for the Center and her other projects, such as a shelter for abused women and an international peace center, “have been ignored.”

She also said that, although the Center is right outside the back door of the Tinian Mayor’s Office, “where all of his employees park their cars for over a year,” the current mayor has never visited the Center—despite many invitation—“to see how his constituents are helping each other with donations of things they don’t use, that [maïa] makes available to anyone who need them.”

All these, maïa says, contributes to her contemplating canceling the Christmas gift event and perhaps even closing down the Donation Center altogether.

Tinian Mayor Jose San Nicolas was unavailable for comment as of press time. He was at a project site.

An office staff said, though, that it is not true that the mayor never visited the Center.

The staff told Saipan Tribune in a telephone inquiry that the mayor had in fact solicited donations from Saipan and that about 20 gifts will be distributed to children on Tinian.

The gifts they have collected were to be transferred to the Center later yesterday afternoon.

“I’d hate to have to close the Center,” maïa said, “but what choice do I have, if no one in officialdom even wants to admit it’s been here and been helping their own people all this time, much less help me continue to do it!”

She added, “If it weren’t for the generosity of Edward Villagomez offering the building rent-free, and for Connie Manglona doing the same in a previous location,” plus her constant support, there would never have been a Donation Center at all.

“And if those who are supposed to be taking care of their people want to go on pretending it doesn’t exist, they’ll get their wish—and it won’t.”

Maia may be contacted at maia3maia@hotmail.com, or tel. # 433-9993.