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Shoppers at Frederick's Wal-Mart locations might notice a Christmas tree adorned with paper ornaments near the entrance, each bearing a first name, last initial and a numbered code.

The ornaments are the holiday gift requests of senior citizens who might otherwise be neglected during the season.

The stores have partnered with Home Instead Senior Care, a Nebraska-based non-medical home care company, which sponsors the annual Be a Santa to a Senior program.

Alison Roncin, a spokeswoman for Home Instead's Frederick office, said this was the fourth year Home Instead was hosting the program in Frederick. It is the sixth annual nationwide event, according to a press release.

"The holiday is often considered a time for children, but seniors — especially those who are isolated and lonely — need to be remembered as well," Linda Kavalec, owner of the Home Instead Senior Care office serving Frederick and Carroll counties, said in a press release.

Kavalec said these seniors often don't have guests during the holiday season, and lack the human contact the holidays offer to most.

Over the past three years, more than 600 gifts have been delivered to seniors in the area, the release states.

To participate, shoppers at either the Wal-Mart located on Guilford Drive or on Monocacy Boulevard in Frederick can pick up one of the ornaments, buy items from the list and return them unwrapped to the store, with the ornament attached between now and Dec. 11.

Volunteers will then wrap and distribute the gifts at three gift-wrapping events, one 2-4 p.m. Dec. 14 at the Frederick County Department of Aging, at 1440 Taney Ave.; from 2-4 p.m. Dec. 15 at the Glade Valley Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, 56 W. Frederick St., Walkersville; and from 2-4 p.m. Dec. 16 at HeartFields at Frederick, 1820 Latham Drive.

For information on volunteering, call Linda Kavalec at 301-846-9922.

Several businesses across the area are teaming up with Toys for Tots. Toys for Tots is a mission of the U.S. Marine Corps. to collect new and unwrapped toys for children in need. The following is a list of area drop-off locations. For a complete list of drop-off locations in Carroll and Frederick counties, visit www.toysfortots.org.

Ijamsville

-Oakdale Elementary School, 9850 Old National Pike

Libertytown

-Libertytown Volunteer Fire Company, 12027 South St.

Monrovia

-Green Valley Elementary School, 11501 Fingerboard Road

-New Market/Green Valley Station 25, 3939 Green Valley Road

Mount Airy

-Concetta's Main Street Italian Bistro, 231 S. Main St.

-The Little Gym, 2702 Back Acre Circle

-Frederick Memorial Hospital — Mount Airy health services, 1502 S. Main St.

-Rollins-PCI Construction, 1302 Rising Ridge Road, Suite 9

-Susquehanna Bank, 530 E. Ridgeville Blvd.

New Market

-Maryland's Treasures, 1 W. Main St.

-New Market Chiropractic, 11717 Old National Pike, Suite 8

-New Market District Volunteer Fire Company, 76 W. Main St.

-West Winds Tennis and Fitness Center, 11411 Gas House Pike

Urbana

-Bright Eyes child Care, 3510 Campus Drive

-Urbana High School, 3471 Campus Drive

Correction: The original version of this story gave the wrong phone number for volunteering. The number is 301-846-9922.