Chuckatuck native Win Winslow has fond memories of Christmases as a child and said he supports the Suffolk Cheer Fund so that none of today’s children have to go without.

“Every kid deserves a toy at Christmas,” he said. “It’s really as simple as that. If I can have a part in making that happen, I’m glad to do it.”

Winslow, a regionally renowned musician, said one Christmas present he still remembers was a little, red, plastic guitar.

“I can always remember wanting to play guitar,” he said. “But I can’t remember if that started it, or if I wanted it before that. I must have asked for it.”

But for Winslow, his favorite memories of Christmas as a child aren’t the toys but the tree.

“The thing I remember most about Christmas as a kid was going to get the tree,” he said.

His father had permission from the caretaker at Lone Star Lakes to go cut a wild tree, he recalls. He and his brother — and, when they were younger, his uncle would help — would join their father to go out, choose a tree, cut it and bring it home.

These days, family is still a big part of Winslow’s Christmases. His entire family — his dad is the youngest of 10 — gets together in December to celebrate Christmas and birthdays. On Christmas Day, he and his girlfriend have breakfast with his parents before heading to his girlfriend’s family’s home.

“It’s a really busy time,” he said. “I think it would be easy to forget the reason for the season and that it really is better to give than to receive, and the Cheer Fund helps me remember that.”

Cheer Fund donations are printed in the Suffolk News-Herald and can be made in honor of or in memory of a loved one. The donor can be listed anonymously if he chooses. The donor can also have his photograph taken giving the check to be published in the newspaper.

Donations for the Cheer Fund are accepted year-round. To give, write a check payable to the Cheer Fund and mail it to P.O. Box 1220, Suffolk, VA 23439, or stop by our office at 130 S. Saratoga St. Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Online giving is also available. To give using a credit or debit card or your PayPal account, click “Donate Here” at the top of our home page, www.suffolknewsherald.com.