The holiday season is upon us, and Optimism Place is looking to help women, children and teens make some enjoyable holiday memories this season.
“Every year we ask our community to donate toys and items for women and children of all ages,” said Operations Coordinator at Optimism Place, Ashleigh Jordan. “Women who have accessed our services whether through residential programs or outreach programs can come in and shop for free to gather gifts for themselves and their families for a stress-free Christmas.”
Last year, 38 women, 61 children and 16 teens were provided gifts thanks to the Optimism Place holiday giving program, and it looks like the numbers may be close to that this year as well. Teens are a large group for this year's holiday giving program, but the number of children has also increased.
“Our numbers will be pretty close, it's just the age range that has changed. We have expanded over this year, we have definitely seen an increase in the number of women and children accessing our services, because we have the capacity to support more families," Jordan said. “We are servicing over 50 children aging in the range of six months all the way to 11 years-old, and we have over 16 teenagers from the ages of 12-18.”
Optimism Place is asking for donations of items for teens specifically as they are a group that is often overlooked. Some ideas for gifts for teens include: LED strip lights, headphones, hoodies, sports equipment, sensory items, makeup, phone charges, and amazon gift cards. They are currently servicing over 40 women as well but they anticipate those numbers will increase closer to Christmas.
“This program is extremely important because women have been through a lot this year,” said Jordan. “Most have moved to safer and better lives after they have used our services, so its just a way for us to give back, while touching base and see how they are making out.”
The deadline for donations is December 6 as the plan is to have people start coming to accept donations on December 9. If anyone is unable to donate until after Christmas, Optimism Place will use the donations to ensure women and children can experience birthday and holiday gifts throughout the year.
“We also have an Amazon wish list that folks can go onto and purchase, and it will be delivered right to our shelter,” said Jordan. “All the items will then be set up in our boardroom and our children’s coordinator will help sort out times for the women to come and pick out their items.”
Anyone looking to learn more can visit the Optimism Place website or email Jordan directly at [email protected].
