Tax Collector employees show true meaning of holidays by giving

Assistant Tax Collector Paul Hinson presenting a check for the $600 to Brent Lane, morning DJ for Cat Country Radio which was coordinating the fund drive.

The office of Robert McClure, Santa Rosa County Tax Collector, took advantage of the holiday season by generously donating on 4 occasions:

The employees purchased t-shirts and made donations to the Santa Rosa Sunshine Buddy Walk which was held on October 14 at the Milton Center of PJC. This walk was to raise funds and promote acceptance for people with Down Syndrome. They were able to proudly contribute $400 to this most worthy cause.

The employees then had a food drive during the month of November to benefit the Family Resource Center of Santa Rosa County. They were able to collect in excess of 1,000 food items and deliver two SUVs full of non-perishable items to the Family Resource Center in Milton. These food items were much appreciated by the association who stated that their pantries were virtually empty and this donation came just in time to help out numerous families at Thanksgiving.

Next, the employees chose a Friday in November and requested staff to donate $5 to be able to dress down for the day. That endeavor garnered $75, which the office donated to the Salvation Army.

To close out the year of 2006 on a high note the office chose to have a fund raiser to benefit Sgt. Thomas Eyman. Sgt. Eyman is a member of the 842nd Army Signal Company Reserve Unit which had just served a year's duty in Iraq. Afew days before the unit flew back to the U.S., Amber Eyman, wife of Sgt. Eyman, gave birth to a son. Cooper Eyman was born in Pensacola on Sunday, November 12. Sadly, on November 13, Amber Eyman passed away in the hospital from a cause unrelated to childbirth. Sgt. Eyman lives in Milton and was now faced with the responsibility of raising both Cooper and Cassidy, his 3 year old daughter. The Tax Collector's Office wanted to do something special for Sgt. Eyman and his children. They chose to have casual Fridays throughout the month of December with employees again paying $5 to be able to dress down. Through this effort, they were able to collect $600 to donate to the Sgt. Eyman fund.