Thanks to Eden’s generosity in sponsoring the Eden Gives Back program, I was able to adopt a family in need this Christmas. I am very grateful for the opportunity to represent this caring community and to shine your beam of hope and compassion on yet another deserving family this year.
I was so impressed with the Plano Santas program sponsored by my local Assistance Center last year that I am excited to be able to participate in this amazing program again. With the help of a volunteer who sifted through case sheets with me, I selected an African American family of six: parents in their late forties with four children between the ages of six and twelve.
The father—a veteran who has served our country—recently lost his job after being hospitalized for a week with meningitis, which he contracted on the job as a commercial sanitation worker. Overall, he was very sick for a week and a half with the illness. When he returned to work, needing an income more than ever to pay for hospital bills and missed work days, he was informed that he was fired but that he “shouldn’t take it personally.” He was very hurt because he had taken the initiative to return to school to take classes so he could better fulfill his job obligations and because he had also traveled all over the State of Texas for this company. He had tried to go above and beyond in performing his duties, so he did not see the layoff coming and is still stunned. Nevertheless, he has an extremely upbeat personality and was a joy to talk to over the phone. He is remaining positive about finding new employment. However, he and his wife are very sad that this challenging time comes right before the Christmas holidays. They are struggling to keep their heads above water and a roof over their heads, so they won’t be able to give their children a Christmas this year, which breaks their hearts. I know we all want these children to have a beautiful Christmas! The holidays are magic—especially to kiddos between the ages of six and twelve. It feels wonderful to know that we can keep that magic alive for them.
The parents were very sweet and repeatedly thanked me for adopting their family, emphasizing that any help for their children would be greatly appreciated. I let them know that it was actually a network of caring people who had adopted them, not just me. This family thanks all of you for your help and for caring.
Anyway, enough with the introduction of the family’s current sad circumstances (which I just know they will triumphantly overcome). Let’s get on with the fun stuff: playing Santa to these kiddos! Don’t forget: Bringing a smile to these kids’ faces will do wonders for lifting the spirits of their parents as well, providing them with much-needed encouragement. Also, I will be taking a thirty-day supply of food donated by the Assistance Center to feed the entire family when I go deliver the gifts next weekend!
Below is an introduction to each child and to his or her wish lists. Of course, we won’t be able to get everything on their wish lists for them, but we’ll get as much as we can (prioritizing the clothing first). If any of you feel strongly about where/what to buy off of these lists, please let me know! I want to stretch every dollar as much as possible. I will be using the $100 that EF is giving me for being an Eden Gives Back ambassador to instead help these children. There is no way in the world that I need or want to be paid to do this! It is a privilege not only to represent this community but to help this family.
The youngest child is a six-year-old boy. He needs pajamas, a winter hat, and some clothes and shoes. He loves cars, such as MatchBox or uv cars (if anyone knows what uv cars are, please let me know!). He also likes train sets, trucks, and remote-controlled motorcycles, as well as yo-yos, books, and funny movies.
The second-youngest child is an eight-year-old girl. She needs some gloves (specifically, some pretty pink ones!) and a Christmas dress. She still loves fairytale stuff: she wants either a ballerina jewelry box or a princess tiara from The Princess and the Frog. She also likes dolls, play makeup, jump ropes, LeapFrog, books, and princess girl movies. She also likes either the Dream Fairy Room Light or the Sweet Dreams Starlight Projection Clock.
The second-oldest child is a nine-year-old boy. He needs a jacket and a warm hat (he specifically wants a SpongeBob jacket). He wants a football, some SillyBandz, a DS with Mario Kart game or a Mario Wii game, Electronic Brain Games, DragonBallZ toys, the new Puss in Boots movie, books, or Christmas movies.
The oldest child is a twelve-year-old boy. He needs nonspecific clothing items and shoes. As far as wants, he really, really wants an X-Box since his X-Box broke right around the time his father got sick and became unemployed. I know we cannot afford to buy him a new X-Box, but if anyone knows where I can find a used one or has any suggestions whatsoever, I would greatly appreciate it. I remember my brother’s and my nephews’ interests when they were twelve, so I know how important a game player is to a kid that age. He also would love some video games (though again, his X-Box is currently not working), an MP3 player, a digital camcorder, or a watch. Again, these are more expensive items, and we won’t have that much to work with, so he will be the most challenging to shop for. Please, please give me some suggestions here! I’d like him to get some of his genuine wants, like his younger siblings, and not just his basic needs. I’ve considered putting any amount designated for his wants toward a gift card at GameStop so that he could perhaps put it either toward getting some parts to fix his broken X-Box or toward purchasing a used one.
Thank you once again for this opportunity to help bring a smile to several faces! Please know that this couldn’t possibly be done without your help and that you are all kinds of awesome for making this happen. It just feels great to become a link in this chain of encouragement to help pull a deserving family out of one of the inevitable ruts in life, giving them hope that they are only in that rut temporarily.
While I always feel sad bypassing one sheet for another when looking over case sheets of families in need, wishing I could just take them all, I just keep reminding myself that we can’t become overwhelmed by the knowledge that we, as individuals, cannot help every single needy family in the world. We can, however, make absolutely all the difference in the world to one needy family at a time by showing them that someone cares. Spreading hope and good cheer has always been—and always will be—the true spirit of Christmas. Sometimes just knowing someone cares is enough motivation to help them get back on their feet again—and once they are back on their feet again, who knows how many needy people this close-knit and loving family will go on to touch, thus adding yet another link in the chain of encouragement?
I was so impressed with the Plano Santas program sponsored by my local Assistance Center last year that I am excited to be able to participate in this amazing program again. With the help of a volunteer who sifted through case sheets with me, I selected an African American family of six: parents in their late forties with four children between the ages of six and twelve.
The father—a veteran who has served our country—recently lost his job after being hospitalized for a week with meningitis, which he contracted on the job as a commercial sanitation worker. Overall, he was very sick for a week and a half with the illness. When he returned to work, needing an income more than ever to pay for hospital bills and missed work days, he was informed that he was fired but that he “shouldn’t take it personally.” He was very hurt because he had taken the initiative to return to school to take classes so he could better fulfill his job obligations and because he had also traveled all over the State of Texas for this company. He had tried to go above and beyond in performing his duties, so he did not see the layoff coming and is still stunned. Nevertheless, he has an extremely upbeat personality and was a joy to talk to over the phone. He is remaining positive about finding new employment. However, he and his wife are very sad that this challenging time comes right before the Christmas holidays. They are struggling to keep their heads above water and a roof over their heads, so they won’t be able to give their children a Christmas this year, which breaks their hearts. I know we all want these children to have a beautiful Christmas! The holidays are magic—especially to kiddos between the ages of six and twelve. It feels wonderful to know that we can keep that magic alive for them.
The parents were very sweet and repeatedly thanked me for adopting their family, emphasizing that any help for their children would be greatly appreciated. I let them know that it was actually a network of caring people who had adopted them, not just me. This family thanks all of you for your help and for caring.
Anyway, enough with the introduction of the family’s current sad circumstances (which I just know they will triumphantly overcome). Let’s get on with the fun stuff: playing Santa to these kiddos! Don’t forget: Bringing a smile to these kids’ faces will do wonders for lifting the spirits of their parents as well, providing them with much-needed encouragement. Also, I will be taking a thirty-day supply of food donated by the Assistance Center to feed the entire family when I go deliver the gifts next weekend!
Below is an introduction to each child and to his or her wish lists. Of course, we won’t be able to get everything on their wish lists for them, but we’ll get as much as we can (prioritizing the clothing first). If any of you feel strongly about where/what to buy off of these lists, please let me know! I want to stretch every dollar as much as possible. I will be using the $100 that EF is giving me for being an Eden Gives Back ambassador to instead help these children. There is no way in the world that I need or want to be paid to do this! It is a privilege not only to represent this community but to help this family.
The youngest child is a six-year-old boy. He needs pajamas, a winter hat, and some clothes and shoes. He loves cars, such as MatchBox or uv cars (if anyone knows what uv cars are, please let me know!). He also likes train sets, trucks, and remote-controlled motorcycles, as well as yo-yos, books, and funny movies.
The second-youngest child is an eight-year-old girl. She needs some gloves (specifically, some pretty pink ones!) and a Christmas dress. She still loves fairytale stuff: she wants either a ballerina jewelry box or a princess tiara from The Princess and the Frog. She also likes dolls, play makeup, jump ropes, LeapFrog, books, and princess girl movies. She also likes either the Dream Fairy Room Light or the Sweet Dreams Starlight Projection Clock.
The second-oldest child is a nine-year-old boy. He needs a jacket and a warm hat (he specifically wants a SpongeBob jacket). He wants a football, some SillyBandz, a DS with Mario Kart game or a Mario Wii game, Electronic Brain Games, DragonBallZ toys, the new Puss in Boots movie, books, or Christmas movies.
The oldest child is a twelve-year-old boy. He needs nonspecific clothing items and shoes. As far as wants, he really, really wants an X-Box since his X-Box broke right around the time his father got sick and became unemployed. I know we cannot afford to buy him a new X-Box, but if anyone knows where I can find a used one or has any suggestions whatsoever, I would greatly appreciate it. I remember my brother’s and my nephews’ interests when they were twelve, so I know how important a game player is to a kid that age. He also would love some video games (though again, his X-Box is currently not working), an MP3 player, a digital camcorder, or a watch. Again, these are more expensive items, and we won’t have that much to work with, so he will be the most challenging to shop for. Please, please give me some suggestions here! I’d like him to get some of his genuine wants, like his younger siblings, and not just his basic needs. I’ve considered putting any amount designated for his wants toward a gift card at GameStop so that he could perhaps put it either toward getting some parts to fix his broken X-Box or toward purchasing a used one.
Thank you once again for this opportunity to help bring a smile to several faces! Please know that this couldn’t possibly be done without your help and that you are all kinds of awesome for making this happen. It just feels great to become a link in this chain of encouragement to help pull a deserving family out of one of the inevitable ruts in life, giving them hope that they are only in that rut temporarily.
While I always feel sad bypassing one sheet for another when looking over case sheets of families in need, wishing I could just take them all, I just keep reminding myself that we can’t become overwhelmed by the knowledge that we, as individuals, cannot help every single needy family in the world. We can, however, make absolutely all the difference in the world to one needy family at a time by showing them that someone cares. Spreading hope and good cheer has always been—and always will be—the true spirit of Christmas. Sometimes just knowing someone cares is enough motivation to help them get back on their feet again—and once they are back on their feet again, who knows how many needy people this close-knit and loving family will go on to touch, thus adding yet another link in the chain of encouragement?
