Carrying on with grandma’s tradition

HENNEPIN — No offense, Santa, but it’s often grandmothers who are responsible for creating our warm Christmas memories and holiday traditions.

Village of Hennepin resident, board member, firefighter and chef Matt Dean has made his grandmother proud by continuing one of her festive traditions, and after eight years it’s alive and well and bigger than ever.

“My grandmother used to make cookies during the holidays for her church and would give them out in similar fashion as we do to people in her town,” Dean said. “I guess back in 2009, something clicked in me, and that’s where it began.”

The annual baking event started when he asked if he could use the fire department’s kitchen to bake a large quantity of cookies.

His plan was to not only bake Christmas cookies for family and friends, but to honor his grandmother’s tradition and deliver some to seniors in the Hennepin area.

A few fellow firefighters pitched in to help during the first year, and by the next winter the idea had caught on and involved most of the department, as well as several of their family members and friends who helped deliver cookies to even more people.

Each year the tradition has grown, and this year nearly 200 boxes of handmade cookies were baked by department members and their wives. More were baked and donated by community members, including extras from the Hennepin United Methodist Church cookie walk. A few of the firefighters also donated 16 dozen of the popular fire department cutout cookies baked and frosted by the Spring Valley Bakery.

“We try to hit those who are retired, have lost somebody loved or any other persons who just need to have a good holiday pick-me-up. The list is always evolving, growing and sometimes sadly shrinking,” fellow firefighter and board member Quentin Buffington said.

The amount and variety of cookies varies from year to year, but boxes typically have between 18 and 26 different treats. This year, 61 different ingredients were used.

“The holiday cutouts, stained glass, peanut butter and peanut blossom cookies are always crowd favorites,” Buffington said.

How does a simple and kind act during the holidays, such as delivering a box of cookies to a senior, help the community as a whole?

“It allows us to connect with people we might not get to regularly see,” Buffington said. “A lot of times, we find out important information in regards to the well-being of our residents while delivering cookies, and of course it’s just another act of kindness that reminds so many people why they chose to live in small-town USA.”

Dean was asked how it feels to have seen this continued family tradition grow into what it is today.

“It’s pretty awesome to see so many people volunteer their weekend time to bake off and deliver cookies to spread a little holiday spirit,” he said. “Starting out with delivering far less than 50 packages to now pushing 120 is pretty amazing,”

It couldn’t be done without the help of the firefighters’ wives, mothers and other loved ones, he said.

“There are a lot of elves that help put this together,” he said.

With the old saying of “It’s better to give than receive,” in mind, Dean was asked who he thinks enjoys it more, the bakers or those on the receiving end.

“I think it’s pretty mutual,” he said. “Even if you weren’t getting cookies, there were definitely smiles all around town as the Christmas carols played from the speaker on the fire engine.

“Whether you’re receiving cookies, seeing your neighbor get cookies, or working with us and delivering cookies, I’m pretty sure everybody’s hearts were left a little fuller, and a few stomachs, too.”