Next week, REACH will host its annual Holiday Gift Program, which provides gifts to more than 225 families that have stayed in our Shelter or worked with a Community Advocate. We wanted to share with you a special thank-you note we got a couple of years ago that illustrates the impact these gifts can have.
I am writing this note to show my appreciation for all the wonderful gifts my son and I received during the holiday season.
I also wanted to share a special story with you. I know you don’t know me and I may never have the pleasure to meet you however I would like you to know that your gifts meant a lot to us and your generosity will never be forgotten. Here is our story:
The day I was planning to pick up the holiday gifts, it snowed very badly. We got stuck in traffic for hours and then had to come home to clean our driveway. My son (who is only seven years old) wanted to go outside, clean the driveway and play out in the snow. I only had a very thin jacket and kept on getting cold, so I kept going in and out to get warm. My son asked why I did that and I explained to him that I was cold. He then went inside with me and with all the innocence of a seven year old said, “Don’t worry Mama I will talk to Santa tonight and ask him to bring you a jacket and scarf to keep you warm when we are outside in the cold.” I said to him, “Okay Sweetheart I’m sure he will listen to you.” He answered me, “Mama, he will – he always gets me what I want.”
The next day we went to get the presents and he saw a big box, he said very excitedly, “Mama, that’s for you, open it Mama, open it!” I said, “How do you know?” He answered, “I just know.” We opened the present and to our surprise it was a beautiful coat. He started jumping up and down; I almost cried because he had not even opened his own presents he was just happy that Santa sent me the coat.
Then he opened some of his presents and he was excited, loved everything Santa sent him. He said, “Mama, open more presents!” So I did. I opened a present and it was a beautiful scarf, my favorite color and very unique because you could use it as a scarf or a hat and scarf. My son said, “See Mama Santa loves us. Santa even knows that you are not careful with your scarves and hats so he gave one that won’t come off very easily.” And again he was so excited.
We also just moved, because of my situation I basically had to start from scratch. I received some stuff for my home so my son believes that Santa even sent our apartment something.
To this date I can still see my son’s face full of excitement and belief. Again, thank you so very much for your generosity and kindness toward us. Please note that even though we are strangers you made a big difference in our life during our holiday season. It is not just the material items, it was the fact that you have also given us hope and belief. For my son, that Santa is just great and for me that there are still GREAT people in the world. That Santa could be any of us. For us it was you. You were our Santa that fulfilled our dreams for that day and we will never forget it…
Yours truly,
A very grateful family
To support REACH’s Holiday Gift Program, click here, select “General Donation” and then under “I want my gift to go towards” select “Holiday Gift Program” from the drop-down menu. We can also always use gift cards to cover any last-minute requests we receive. Places like Target, TJ Maxx/Marshalls/Homegoods, Market Basket, and the Burlington Mall are among those most requested. For more information, contact courtney@reachma.org.
