As Christmas approached, Drumore residents Linda and Dave Reath wanted to convey to their young daughter a simple and eternal truth: Joy is found in giving to others.

Their then-neighbors, Kathy and Bob Schober, just had opened Country View Manor, a retirement home in Quarryville. So the Reaths asked if they could put together holiday baskets for the home's half-dozen or so residents.

That was 25 years ago.

The Reaths' little girl, Michelle, is now 34, and the mother of her own little girl. Country View Manor now has two dozen residents. And the Reaths' holiday service project has grown into an annual affair.

On Saturday, for the 25th time, the Reaths brought piles of Christmas presents for the residents of Country View Manor to the home's Christmas party.

Dozens of people — staff members, residents, and residents' family members and friends — gathered for an evening party. Acoustic guitarist Keil Holland, of York, led the residents and their guests in singing holiday standards (they sang the "Gloria" chorus of "Angels We Have Heard on High" with particular gusto).

And then Santa Claus handed out the Reaths' presents to the residents: two dozen plastic shoe boxes, wrapped with red-and-white striped paper, and adorned with a heart fashioned from two candy canes. The boxes each were filled with an array of small, individually wrapped gifts: Kleenex, hand cream, liquid shower soap, a bar of soap, a face cloth, Chapstick, a puzzle book, and a calendar/notepad.

Kathy Schober and her husband, Bob, own both Country View Manor and Evergreen Estates Retirement Community. She marveled at what the Reaths do, especially given the relatively small size of the Reath family.

"They so quietly and graciously give," she said.

Bob Schober noted that as Country View Manor expanded, so, too, did the Reaths' gift-shopping list. But they carried on giving, undaunted.

Resident Pauline Stoner, wearing a festive red blouse and a merry smile, exclaimed happily as her present was handed to her. "It's heavy! Is Santy" — Santa — "in here?" she quipped.

Asked whether it gets expensive, shopping for so many people, Dave Reath said, "It's one of those things, it's almost like a family tradition to us. I don't think about the expense."

"We [get] a lot of pleasure out of doing it," Linda Reath said. "It wouldn't seem like Christmas to us if we didn't do it every year."

Last week, she said, as the family wrapped gifts for the party, Michelle's daughter, 7-year-old Sierra, observed: "We're like Santa's elves."

Linda Reath was a wallpaper-hanger before she decided to stay home to care for her elderly mother, and to help look after Sierra. Dave Reath works in building maintenance utility for RR Donnelley.

Said Linda Reath: "We've been blessed in so many ways in our lives."

Linda Reath said she didn't realize until Kathy Schober pointed it out that her family has been bringing Christmas gifts to Country View Manor for 25 years. The Reaths also donate a turkey and ham for the residents' holiday meal. They do this, despite not having family members at the home.

"I hope that it's brightened a lot of lives," Linda Reath said.

She said the folks at Country View Manor arrange the entertainment for the party and prepare  the food. "The residents, they just light up — they enjoy it so much," she said.

Linda Reath said her daughter has learned well the lesson she and her husband set out to teach all those years ago. Her daughter, Michelle Coulter, works as a front-office supervisor at Lancaster General's Arthritis and Rheumatology Specialists.

"I can see where, in the long run, it's taught her a lot of kindness and respect for the elderly," Linda Reath said, adding, "She's very, very giving."

Michelle said that even as a teenager, she looked forward to the holiday party at Country View Manor. "I never felt like, 'Oh this is a burden, not this again. … I never felt that way."

She said she hopes to continue her family's gift-giving tradition at Country View Manor for years to come. And she hopes to pass the tradition on to her daughter.

"I can't imagine not doing this at Christmas," Coulter said. "Each year has its own special moments, but to have watched it grow over the years, it's amazing."

Barbara Regan, of Quarryville, attended Saturday's party as the guest of her mother, Doris Brown, who turned 100 in September. As she chose a few snacks from the platters of hors d'oeuvres, set amid sprays of holly, on the home's dining room tables, Regan also used to the word "amazing," to describe what the Reaths have done for 25 years.

Regan said the party, and the presents, were particularly important to the residents who no longer have family members with whom to celebrate the holidays.

Dolores Erb, who's been living at Country View Manor since last December, said the party was "wonderful," and the presents were "beautiful — it's everything you need."

Dave Reath surveyed the happy scene around him, and said, "Now you see why it's worthwhile. This is a lot of fun."

Contact Sunday News staff writer Suzanne Cassidy at scassidy@lnpnews.com.