GORHAM – With an assortment of Christmas sweets as presents for shut-ins, two Gorham women were busy Monday in a home kitchen filling decorative tins with cookies.

Jude Garland and Shelby Zaner have been handling their holiday mission for about a decade in a program sponsored annually by the board of deacons at the First Parish Congregational Church. Volunteers at the church baked the cookies, and an array of treats in different colors and shapes filled a counter in Garland’s kitchen on Monday.

Many of the cookie donors baked an extra batch while cooking for their own families.

“We’re doing 15 of them,” Garland said, as they selected cookies for tins from the variety spread on the counter. “They love the food.”

The two women, both retired teachers, said they would be assisted by Gorham resident Marion Marsh delivering the tins, cheering up senior citizens.

“It’s a hard time of the year,” said Garland, who also serves as chairwoman of the Gorham Ecumenical Council.

A number of their elderly recipients of cookies have been left to celebrate Christmas alone.

“Some don’t have families,” Zaner said.

One senior in their rounds is 96.

Garland retired as a teacher at Canal School in Westbrook, while Zaner retired after teaching in Maine School Administrative District 6 at George E. Jack and the Edna Libby elementary schools in Standish.

The women, who both attend the First Parish Church, know the favorite cookies for each senior on their cookie list.

Zaner said she often hears, “Oh, I love these,” when someone opens a door and a tin.

Many times just the visit brightens a day for a shut-in.

“They love to see us coming,” Zaner said.

While the two women are remembering the elderly, Baxter Memorial Library is ensuring that a younger generation and even pets are not forgotten for Christmas.

Pam Turner, library director, said on Tuesday that about 50 presents are under the library’s Giving Tree for ages 10-18, and Turner expects more gifts to be donated.

New, unwrapped gifts for children might include movie passes, scarves, gloves and hats, cosmetics and/or toiletries, according to the library’s website. The gifts will be distributed to needy Gorham families.

“The last day for donations is Friday, Dec. 19,” Turner said.

The library’s Youth Services Department is sponsoring its annual Pet-A-Tree downstairs in the library. Turner said the Pet-A-Tree runs through the end of December, and there were only a half a dozen items under the tree so far on Tuesday.

Donations of pet food and or toys for the Animal Refuge League of Greater Portland in Westbrook can be placed under the Pet-A-Tree.

“Kids have been making ornaments to decorate the tree, and we are hoping for more donations of pet food/products as the month progresses,” Turner said.

To fight hunger in town, St. Anne’s Church, 299 Main St. in Gorham, will distribute more than 100 Christmas food baskets on Saturday. For families with children, a spokeswoman at the church said, the baskets would include gifts in addition to food items.

Jude Garland, left, and Shelby Zaner fill Christmas tins with cookies for shut-ins in an annual mission sponsored by the deacons at the First Parish Congregational Church in Gorham.