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Through the program, 100 people or families in need of assistance are spotlighted by the newspaper. Those cases are handpicked by the paper by a list of over 500 submitted by the United Way.
For several years, Andre was in charge of the United Way arm that selected the cases for submission.
"At Christmastime something happens to people. It draws people out," she said. "I think magic things happen -Êpeople don't want children without presents or old people to be alone. To me a miracle happens at Christmas."
Andre first began working with the program in 1957. That year, $8,000 was raised for needy families and individuals. The last year she was involved there was over $1 million raised.
"Every case gets something," she said.
Andre began working for charitable causes in North St. Louis at the Grace Hill House. She worked there for 11 years watching 5- and 6-year-olds.
After that she began working at the United Way where she worked her way up to be the volunteer services program coordinator. Her duties entailed recruiting volunteers.
During her tenure, she recruited volunteers to assist people in signing up for food stamps, and later, in the 1980s, she recruited volunteers to work in clinics and register people for swine flu shots.
Not everywhere was open to accepting volunteers.
"It was hard to sell volunteers - particularly in mental hospitals," said Andre. "Now it is amazing how many people are volunteering at these places. They don't replace workers, but they are there to enhance them."
Andre also worked with the Alternative Community Service Program of St. Louis County at its beginning. The program placed noncriminal violators into nonprofit organizations to perform community service as part of a court sentence. Andre helped recruit agencies to use the offenders.
One challenge that Andre encountered was she had to convince agencies to use the offenders.
"Yesterday they were kids who they would have hired, then they made one error," said Andre. "This gave them a chance after one mistake to not have a record -Êit was amazingly hard to convince them (agencies)."
Today it is commonplace for agencies to use the offenders to help them meet community service requirements.
Moves to Union
In the early '90s Ceal and her husband Bob, who has since passed away, moved to the Union area.
Shortly after the move, Andre began working with Union resident Linda Metcalf to recruit volunteers for school programs in the county, including a grandparents program that brought seniors into the school to work with kids.
"Now schools have their own recruiters and (the number of) volunteers in schools has grown," Andre remarked.
Andre and Metcalf met at the County Seat Senior Center when Andre began working with the transportation program at the center.
"I wrote grant proposals to buy a buss and van and I am still involved in that," she said.
Andre also is active in the Foundation Board at the center and assists in fundraising.
She work to promote and present jam sessions and card parties to pay off the center's debt.
"It is an absolute miracle that people have been so supportive in paying down the center," she said. "They are very responsive in helping -Êwe need to get that paid off."
Traveling
Ceal and Bob loved to travel. However, when he died, Ceal's adventures were curbed.
"After he died I stopped and my son asked why I don't go anywhere," Andre said. "I said that I would have nobody to talk to."
Then her son decided to accompany her on some trips, including a very memorable cruise to Costa Rica.
During that cruise, Andre was separated from her group and lost her way along a jungle path.
A native woman found her, however a language barrier prevented Andre from telling the woman that she was lost and where she was staying.
Andre was finally able to communicate where she was staying using her hotel keys. After a few hours, she was safely with her son.
"I didn't know what to do," said Andre. "She was my guardian angel that day."
She also took trips to Antarctica and Africa.
Andre said she went to Antarctica to see penguins and learned a lot about the Earth.
"I saw global warming for real," said Andre. "It make a difference if it is caused by man or a cycle, we have to do something about it - instead of fighting over whose fault it is."
