The weather outside is frightful, but Christmas morning doesn’t have to be. While some deck the halls, others are waiting for a miracle to have a holly jolly Christmas. If you’re looking to support others during the holiday, there are many ways to do so. A practice that has gained immense popularity, especially this year, is the Angel Tree Program TikTok has recently been obsessed with this donation program. Angel Tree, started by the Salvation Army, is a gift donation program that collects information about children and seniors in need that are shared with donors. Usually, a name is chosen off of a tree displayed in a store, with a wish and necessity list, as well as clothing and shoe sizes. After obtaining an angel, the donor will shop for them, and place the items into a donation box. This is a great opportunity to spread some holiday cheer to those less fortunate.
Angel Tree, however, is not the only gift giving program around. Toys for Tots is another popular gift donation program. Distributing over 677 million toys, Toys for Tots is a charity started by the Marines. On top of taking toy donations during the holiday season, Toys for Tots works year round.
They also have a Foster Care Initiative, that distributes gifts to children to keep with them through the Foster Care system. The Toys for Tots website explains the Foster Care Initiative program by saying, “Foster children are removed from everything that they know and are placed in a completely unknown situation. They also often leave their homes with only a small plastic bag of their belongings. Through the Foster Care Initiative, foster children will be provided with something tangible to take with them as they move and tools and hope for a brighter tomorrow.”
Another program, offered by Toys for Tots since 1980, provides toys and books while supporting the Office of the Vice President of the Navajo Nation with the Navajo Literacy Program. The toys and books are now directly donated to Native American Reservations. Toys for Tots even offers a Youth Ambassador Program that recognizes children for their volunteer efforts. Candidates are submitted by the Toys for Tots Coordinator . They serve a year long term from their region to raise peer awareness.
On top of that, they have a literacy program, created to help financially challenged children succeed academically. Children receive direct access to books and other educational resources impacting their learning and interacting with others. To learn more about the joy spread by both the Angel Tree and Toys for Tots programs, you can visit their websites.
It’s no secret that everyone deserves to be happy during the holiday season. Supporting local charities in any way you can is a great way to help those in need. Even if you are unable to give something materialistic, efforts of spreading cheer and kindness to all never go overlooked.
