The Portage woman cited for theft after police discovered she had unwrapped Caring Tree holiday gifts meant for the children of her neighbor claims a case of mistaken identity.

Denise Kuhnwald said she thought the gifts were for her grandchildren.

"I did not steal anything," she told the Daily Register this week.

The Daily Register initially reported on the story, which subsequently was picked up by Madison television stations, of Portage police being called to a three-apartment home on Christmas Eve when a mother realized she had not received gifts for her children from the Caring Tree Program in Portage. She had requested clothing and food and would not have gifts for her children without them.

A volunteer delivered the package of gifts the Sunday before Christmas to the family's apartment, but they had disappeared from an entryway before she got them, the mother said.

According to police, the gifts were taken by the family's neighbors, a mother and son, Kuhnwald, 41, and Travis Krueger, 22.

Kuhnwald told the Daily Register she had signed up for the Caring Tree program at Wal-Mart for her four grandchildren who are between the ages of 16 months and 7 years.

Caring Tree organizer Rich Heimerl said it was not his program she signed up for at Wal-Mart. Sign-up locations for the program were only at the Portage Furniture Store and the Columbia County Family Resource Center.

Kuhnwald's name was not on the list of 350 to 370 families receiving gifts from the program, Heimerl said.

"There was no package listed under Kuhnwald," he said.

He speculated that perhaps Kuhnwald had signed up with another charitable organization.

"A lot of people get us confused with the different programs in Portage," he said.

According to police, Kuhnwald had admitted to them that she realized it was not the Caring Tree program that she had signed up for.

Portage's Caring Tree, a volunteer organization, collects and distributes gifts and donations for area needy children through the help of area banks and businesses. This year, using gifts and money donated by area residents, volunteers purchased and wrapped gifts for 672 children.

In preparation for delivery during the weekend before Christmas, the Caring Tree gifts for each family are placed in black garbage bags and labeled clearly with names and addresses of the recipients, Heimerl said.

Kuhnwald said that was not the case.

"The bag did not have a name on it," Kuhnwald said. "It was on my front doorstep. I just thought it was mine."

The mother's name was clearly labeled on the bag with yellow tape and black marker, Heimerl said.

"Her last name was on the large black bag," he said.

The majority of the gifts inside were holiday wrapped and labeled with the sex and age of the intended recipient.

"Some presents that we include as extras are not wrapped. But the majority of them were," Heimerl said. "There could have been a couple unwrapped in her bag."

Krueger, when questioned by police, admitted the gifts had been placed in his mother's closet - well, not all of them, as he was wearing one of them at the time, a gray sweatshirt.

He told police that they did not realize the gifts were for another apartment.

When Kuhnwald, prompted by the police, retrieved the gifts from her closet, police discovered that several were still wrapped and labeled with the sex and age of the recipient.

When prompted by police, she returned all the gifts, she said.

"We gave everything back to the officer," she said.

Heimerl said one gift was missing: a card for $50 to be used for food.

"That wasn't in the bag, I swear to God," Kuhnwald said.

Heimerl, however, told the Daily Register: "I can guarantee you we did not deliver that bag without a $50 gift card in it."

He took another $50 food card to the mother on Christmas Eve, along with the now-unwrapped presents. She rewrapped them for her children just in time for Christmas, Heimerl said.

Theft citations for $140.50 were sent to Kuhnwald and Krueger late last week, police said.

Heimerl said he regretted the "blemish" on the program, but that just one theft in 17 years was a good record.

"The true spirit of this thing is to help needy children," he said.

sgreen@capitalnewspapers.com

745-3504