THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, December 25, 1994 TAG: 9412250051
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: NORTH CAROLINA
SOURCE: BY PERRY PARKS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ELIZABETH CITY LENGTH: Medium: 60 lines
When 9-year-old Jeremy Green registered to win a shiny new mountain bike in a radio contest last week, he had someone else in mind.
Jeremy already had a bike, a 10-speed he got new last Christmas. But he knew a girl about his age who has no bike, and who has a lot less than he does.
He told folks at Kix Country - WKJX in Elizabeth City - that if he won the bike, he would give it away.
And when Santa Claus drew his name as the winner, he did just that.
The girl, who the Green family wants to keep anonymous, should receive the bike as a surprise this morning.
``The little girl's not gonna have much of a Christmas,'' Jeremy said at the trailer home he shares with his mother and 10-year-old brother, Jason, off Route 17 North. ``I didn't need it. She needs it.''
The act of generosity has delighted a family and inspired those around Jeremy. He entered the contest while dropping off a gift for the station's Toys For Tots promotion.
``Jeremy made my Christmas when he did that the other day,'' said his mother, Jeaniene Green. ``I did something right, because he did that on his own.''
Jeremy had decided earlier he would help the girl if he could. Green knew the family from her former job at Southgate Mall.
``They struggle just like the rest of us,'' Green said. ``They're both hard-working people.''
Although Green has been out of work for six months, her boyfriend, Alan Evans, who has helped raise the boys, is getting work when he can. Green said her family is ``doing fine,'' and piles of blue, green and red packages stuffed beneath their tree confirm it. A table holds small gift baskets arranged by Jeremy with tiny decorative animals and presents inside.
As the family talked, Jeremy interrogated his mother on the contents of a mail-delivered box she had snatched from Jason as soon as he brought it inside. Their aunt, Valerie Hardison, told them it was a videotape she's been wanting, but the boys claimed it was a Christmas present.
Hardison said she was proud Jeremy donated the bike and thought he deserved recognition.
``Santa Claus knew you were going to do what you did,'' Hardison told him. ``That's why he drew your name.''
Folks at the radio station also were delighted when Jeremy announced his plans on the air.
``We were just tickled to death,'' station General Manager Pat Hill said. ``It's heartwarming to see a child be that generous. . . . It's a nice bicycle.''
But Jeremy says he's satisfied.
``I like the bike I got now.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Jeremy Green, 9, wanted to give his new prize to a family friend.
by CNB