We were stuggling to meet our bills and no food either! A friend of mine made sure we were going to have what we needed…she didn’t tell us what she was doing . I went to mailbox one evening and there was a letter from her. I opened the letter and there was a check for the amount that we needed to buy food and pay our bills. We have always helped one another. I wasn’t expecting her to do it, because she wasn’t doing good financially either. God blessed us that day by a friend. Thank God for friend and always taking care of us, when we need help.
The Christmas That Almost Wasn’t
The year was 1982. I was 4 years old and we were living in a small rental house in the mid size town of Texarkana, Texas. It was December 16th, or so my 2 brothers and sisters tell me, and 1 day before Christmas parties at school and break. My mother was finishing up nursing school and my father worked on the railroad. The presents had been bought and were under the tree. There weren’t very many, but my parents knew they had hit it out of the park that year. You see, there was an Atari waiting for the older kids.
We came home that Thursday evening and discovered a wreck. We had been robbed, and not just a little bit. They even took our Christmas tree. They cut the head off of my Mr. Magoo piggy bank and left his body like a parody of a corpse on my bed. Even our food had been cleaned out. With nothing to be done about it, we helped Momma clean up and went to bed.
The next day after school, my brother Clay was escorted to my Mom’s car by his teacher. I don’t know what was said, but after seeing my mom hugging her and crying, we loaded up his class tree and took it home. We had a tree! That Friday night, there was a knock, and two couples with groceries. Sunday, after church, there was another knock and they tell me my stoic father went to his knees. On the porch, there were a mountain of gifts labeled to each child and even a couple for Mom and Dad.
When Clay was upset at school, Mrs. Lee (his teacher) took him down to the principal’s office where he spilled the whole, sorry story. He gave them our names and ages, leading the principal to start a phone chain with area churches. The best part? Apparently the older kids knew there was an Atari and had already taken it out and played it once, carefully rewrapping it before our parents returned. Clay was distraught about the Atari and thought Santa was punishing them for being sneaky. There just happened to be another Atari under that tree Christmas morning with a not from Santa about dishonesty, but how not unlike God, he loves all of his children.
Jennifer McCallum
My husband and I donated meals to the class of 2020 seniors for 2 schools and also bus drivers and kitchen help for th work they did providing meals to children during the pandemic, cooked chicken,salt potatoes salad and roll with butter. Everyone was very happy and loved it.
Last year for Christmas our family decided that instead of spending hundreds of dollars exchanging gifts we would gather our money and buy gifts for the kids at our local childrens hospital.
There are so many families that dont have the means to experience Christmas like we have been blessed to do so. We wanted to teach our child the meaning of generosity and compassion for others less fortunate in life.
It was a great experience for all of us and we decided to make it a family tradition. We gained so much joy seeing the reactions of children that morning.
I work at our Central Library and we shut down to the public in March. We were able to keep in touch with our patrons through our vast array of online programs and call in reference services. Our staff is like a family so we all missed being together. Being home all the time, prompted many of us to cook, bake, and try new recipes. Several of us posted on FB what we made and some of us drove to each other’s houses to share our food. We remained masked, waved to each other through the window and left the food. It was bright spot in a pretty dismal time.
Southern California had been swept with wildfires back in 2003 one week before Halloween.
Being blessed of not losing our home I felt that I needed to give back. So I took my little sister who was 13 years old at the time with me to pumpkin patches, talked to the owners about donating pumpkins so that we can take them to the evacuation shelter to carve pumpkins with the kids. We also rounded up donations for candy and costumes so the kids could have some sort of normalcy and a Halloween.
We went to the shelter, talked to the administrators and parents and they were more than happy to participate in the Halloween festivities… We went around and handed out costumes and the kids trick or treated at the different cots and areas then we carved the over 100 pumpkins ate candy til our bellys hurt and shared stories of our favorite Halloween memories.
I took my little sister with me so that she can learn the importance of doing for others and to value sense of community.
I was a cab driver and all my extra gifts I had bought after wrapping my kids gift I took in the cab with me to give to other people. It was Christmas Eve and about 11pm. I picked up a lady who wasn’t going far and was obviously upset about something. So as Im driving her to her destination she proceeds to tell me that someone had robbed her and she had nothing to give her kids for Christmas. And that I was dropping her off in the hood to make some money to get her kids something to open in the morning. I felt horrible so I offered all my gifts to her and she started calling her eyes out and said please take me back home. She didn’t even have the money for the fare of the cab. But I didn’t care as long as she had something for her kids to open. So I took her home and helped her carry gifts in the house, where obviously someone stole all her gifts. And helped her out them under the tree. And then she gave me a big hug and said thank you. The next day when I went to work, I had a message to call someone when I got in. So I called the number and it was her asking if I could stop by, I said sure. So while I wasn’t busy I stopped by and her kids greeted.me at the door. They made me a Christmas card and had a good meal ready to go for me. The mom was very happy how it turned out and wanted to give me something for helping her. The smiles on those kids was enough for me. I would do it again if given the chance!!
When my son was in 3rd grade, one of his classmates house had burned to the ground 2 weeks before Christmas. He came home upset and crying, because his friends Christmas gifts were all burned up. I told him people around the area were collecting donations for the family, so the kids would have a Christmas. He lit right up and asked if he could donate his toys. He donated every single toy he had!
Speech"less"
About 11 years ago I was in college and taking a speech class. We had to write a speech and I talked about how on my daughter’s first birthday I had to make a chocolate chip cake because we were so poor. I got emotional and started crying during this speech. At the end of the semester we were donating to some sort of charity and the professor handed me an envelope with about $50 in it. I was so touched I had no clue that they were going to do it. I was able to get my daughter Christmas presents that year thanks to those students.
Growing up as a military brat I knew nothing else but doing for our veterans! As i became an adult and had family of my own me and my children spent alot of time volunteering at va hospitals and other va functions serving the disabled veterans. I became involved when my father became a 100% service connected disabled American veteran my jr of high school, my children from birth. Every year about a week prior to christmas we would travel to our capital city in our State and serve refreshments at the VA Hospital that the veterans were there for weeks upon times and it also housed the veterans going thru rehabilitation training on use of prosthetics or ones that needed nursing home care. Hate to use the terminology of “old soldiers home.” Some of these dav members wouldn’t have a single visitor the whole time there! My children loved going and handing out cookies and giving them their coupon books we had raised money to buy them so they could shop in the box at the hospital. My daughter was about 8 yrs old and three days before we were to go the party was cancelled due to a increased number of highly contagious flu cases. My daughter cried for hours when I told her about our dilemma. On the 23rd my father came home from work and said he had got the call they lifted the lockdown and we would go after new years! My daughter threw a screaming fit! “Pa these veterans need us they need there coupon books and especially need cookies and fudge!” She was so right they needed that personal human contact they needed someone to show they mattered! We baked and baked into the wee hours and headed to the va at 9am on Christmas Eve! My two children, my parents, approximately 25 other DAV and DAVA members and myself showed up at FT. Roots Healthcare facility and handed out over 500 treat plates and over 200 coupon books to Inpatient Disabled American Veterans! In our ride home my daughter said that was the best christmas present ever, and I dont need santa to bring anything! My heart is happy and so are my soldiers! There wasnt one adult in that car that had a dry eye! She is 26 now and continues to go and do these for our veterans every year about a week prior to christmas and now takes my 8 year old granddaughter to do what she did growing up to make our veterans have a good Christmas!
We had been struggling about 6 months in trying to pay bills and buy groceries. I thought we were going to loose our house and not have air or heat. Then one day of going to get the mail, I got a card from a friend of mind. I was so happy to here from her. I opened the card and inside a card was all the money, we needed to get our bills caught up. We had enough to pay all bills and groceries for several months. God had blesses us from a dear friend, that really needed it herself but sacrifice for us. I will never forget what a friend and God had blessed us with and thank God for it.
Growing up Money was always tight for us. I am 4th of 7 siblings. After my dad died in 1985 my mom always got help with Christmas presence with school supplies. So once I came in adult I always made sure that I gave money to Any charity That helped with Christmas for families. Well then I got to the point that I was doing really well financially so I started Shopping for Christmas presents for family. When we went to drop everything off my brother dressed up as Santa Claus And when the children saw Santa Claus bringing them presents & food. I’ll never forget the look on their faces… It was the best gift I think I’ve ever received.
My name is unknown for this post because I’m writing about those whom I serve throughout the years. I cook meals for those who don’t cook or otherwise can’t cook. I offer these meals anonymously to anyone who lives in my center. Therefore I am for nothing other than for those people to bring a covered dish in which for me to put there meal into. Honestly my 
is happy when I can do for others there’s no way to explain the rewards of helping those who may not other wise be able to enjoy a wonderful home cooked meal.
My gift this year was to pay some money towards someone purchase whether that be at the grocery store or any other place I maybe. To see someone say are you serious someone did what and they hear payed 20$ towards your purchase today. When you can do this for multiple people it’s rewarding and I had one lady actually try to give me double what I payed. The only way she knew it was me I’d because the cashier told her while I was waiting in line to cash in my tickets.
As the lady and I talked I told her it’s not about getting the money back it’s about you paying it forward that would be my greatest gift.