Fitness class holds a different kind of gift exchange for holidays

FALLBROOK - Four years ago, the students of Wade into Fitness classes at the Fallbrook Community Center decided they didn’t need another plastic holiday ornament made in China or a trinket that might end up in a white elephant exchange or landfill. Instead, they decided that rather than have a gift exchange for themselves, they would take all the little bits of money they would have spent and put it into a group donation.

After the funds were gathered, students all selected a single candy cane from a Santa hat. Whoever pulled the specially-marked winning candy cane got to choose the charity of...