On Saturday, December 17, 2022, beginning at 8 a.m., current and retired Reno firefighters will be assembling and delivering holiday food baskets to pre-selected families, continuing a tradition that started nearly 90 years ago.Â
Families are selected for the program through referrals from a number of community-based organizations and agencies. This year, Reno firefighters are planning to distribute 200 baskets.
The program, traditionally known as the Sam Saibini Christmas Food Basket Program, has grown over the years with primary funding provided by members of the Reno Fire Department, and the donation of support and services from local businesses and individuals who have learned about the program.
In 1932, the late Sam Saibini joined the Reno Fire Department as a firefighter. He asked the captains at each of the Reno fire stations to help him provide Christmas dinners for families in need, with firefighters donating $1 each to help purchase food.
Saibini, who retired in 1968 as a Battalion Chief, later said the program started during the Depression when people were tearing down fences just to obtain wood to burn for heat. During that period, Reno firefighters also began to purchase supplies of wood and coal for distribution to local families, which were stored in a back storeroom with the food supplies at the old Central Fire Station at the corner of Commercial Row and West Street.
(City of Reno)
