Anna Smith's aging Price Hill home had fallen into serious disrepair. The furnace and water heater were nearly spent. City inspectors said her chimneys violated code. She didn't have the money to fix everything.

        Thanks to generous giving by Enquirer readers, the 61-year-old legally blind widow, who suffers from a serious blood disorder and other health problems, now has a new furnace, water heater and other improvements for her home. She also has a new friend.

Anna Smith and her new friend Cathy Mee. (Michael E. Keating photo) | ZOOM |

        Mrs. Smith was profiled in the 15th annual Wish List project for the needy, which on Wednesday completed its most successful campaign ever. The project is sponsored by the Enquirer and administered by United Way, both of which donate administration costs. Stories of disadvantaged people are told in the newspaper, and readers respond with cash and merchandise.

        The final tally: 2,373 donors contributed $207,250.32, which passes the previous year's record of $206,357 from 2,330 donors. Since 1986, when the annual fund drive began, contributors have given more than $2 million.

        “The success of this year's Wish List again underscores the compassionate people of Greater Cincinnati,” said Ward Bushee, Enquirer vice president and editor. “The Enquirer is pleased to sponsor the Wish List project.”

        In stories published from Dec. 2 to Dec. 16, the newspaper described the plight of 22 people. The United Way has sent checks to the social-service agencies working with those people to meet their needs. The remainder of the contributions will be divided among participating agencies to help with emergency needs of clients throughout the year.

        Additionally, many agencies received duplicate donations of new and used goods, such as appliances and furniture. Those not donated to the individuals featured in the newspaper will be stored by the agencies until they are needed.

        “We are thrilled with the generosity that this community has shown in support of the Wish List,” said Taleen Cassidy, Wish List coordinator for the United Way.
       

A new friend
       

        Mrs. Smith lives with her disabled adult son in a home that had many needs. She was on a list to have roof and chimney repairs done by Normar Corp., which contracts with the city of Cincinnati to do work for low-income homeowners. But the wait can be two years.

        After Mrs. Smith appeared in the Wish List, the company made her home a priority. Her roof has been replaced, and her chimneys repaired.

        A new furnace, water heater and duct work were donated and installed through the combined efforts of Cincinnati-Hamilton County Community Action Agency, Irish Heating & Air Conditioning and All Kool Heating and Air Conditioning.

        Jim Tenhundfeld, Community Action's weatherization director, sent a worker to assist Mrs. Smith in applying for services. The agency then enrolled her in the federal Home Energy Assistance Program, which will help her pay utility bills; paid one month of her mortgage; provided a $70 food voucher; and signed her up for Lifeline phone service, a reduced-rate program for low-income customers.

        “It felt so wonderful,” said Mrs. Smith, whose husband died 10 years ago from brain cancer.

        She also had another wish, one she had kept to herself.

        “Actually, I wanted a friend. And I got one.”

        Among those who read about Mrs. Smith and wanted to help was 62-year-old Cathy Mee of Colerain Township. Initially she considered making a simple cash donation. But then she contacted a social service agency, which put her in touch with Mrs. Smith's niece, who arranged for the Ms. Mee and Mrs. Smith to meet.

        “We clicked right away,” Mrs. Smith said. “She's been really wonderful to me.

        “She took me out to a New Year's Eve dance. I didn't dance. But I enjoyed being out that night and listening to the music. I hadn't been out for . . . over 10 years.”

        A week later, on Mrs. Smith's birthday, Ms. Mee took her to dinner. She has also accompanied Mrs. Smith to an eye exam and has made an appointment with her personal doctor so Mrs. Smith can get a physical.

        “She is the sweetest, dearest lady,” said Ms. Mee, who plans to help Mrs. Smith with other home improvements. “I feel like I have benefited more from (the friendship). She's a doll.”
       

Update on giving
       

        Many others helped make the Wish List a success. And perhaps none were as determined as the students and staff at St. Michael School in Bellevue.

        Students in grades 5 to 8 began their efforts in November. Eighth-graders formed committees to oversee various projects, which included bagging groceries at the Riverside Supervalu in Dayton, Ky.; selling luminaria kits; holding a craft sale; selling hot chocolate before school; and a organizing a raffle.

        The $2,774 raised by students surpassed their own record, $2,200, from last year.

        The school's involvement with the Wish List began about 10 years ago when teacher Mary Jo Puglielli heard her sixth-graders complain about having to buy gifts for each other. As an alternative, she suggested they help someone else.

        “I thought this would be a more valuable lesson,” she said.

        Each year, the students read Wish List stories and decide whom to help. This time, they chose the Mills family, whose home was destroyed by fire a year ago. Their new home in Northside is sparse.

        Cassandra Mills, who has been disabled since the early 1990s, cares for six children — four of her own and two relatives. The children are ages 16 to 1 1/2.

        “I'm starting my life over, and I'm starting with nothing,” Ms. Mills, 32, told the Enquirer in a Dec. 12 story.

        St. Michael staff delivered some items, including a TV and VCR, to the Mills family before Christmas. Since then, students and staff have shopped for furniture, school supplies and games. Final deliveries to the family should be made this week.

        Both young and old have benefited from readers' donations. Helen Matthey, an 83-year-old widow who lives in Clermont County, has received an electrical upgrade for her home, a water heater, refrigerator and other items. James Ford, 56, of Newport, who lost both legs in a hit-and-run accident, now has a motorized wheelchair. And 8-year-old Reneka Minter of the West End, who is diabetic, can store emergency snacks in a refrigerator in her second-grade classroom, and a doctor has donated time to explain the girl's condition to her classmates.

        Peter Leyman had his wish granted in December. Now the 82-year-old Roselawn man, who immigrated to Cincinnati from Ukraine, can do what he loves: read.

        He lost his eyesight due to macular degeneration. Hand-held magnifiers helped him read a letter or two at a time, but Parkinson's disease makes his hands shake, so stringing those letters together was impossible.

        Barbara Schwartz read about Mr. Leyman's plight, and had just what he needed: a video magnifier with a 19-inch screen. The equipment had been used by her father, who died a few days before the story about Mr. Leyman appeared.

        “He's using it for reading, and he can pay his bills, he can write a check. He reads newspapers,” said Natalie Lisnyansky, Mr. Leyman's caseworker with Jewish Family Services. “It has completely changed his life.”

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