The gift of giving this holiday season in Western Washington
Between gift drives and volunteering opportunities, there are many ways to support your local Washington community this holiday season.
By Michaela Ely
With the holidays drawing near, many organizations have begun their gift drives, volunteer opportunities or fundraising efforts to give back to their respective communities.?
There are several local gift drives that are specific to Washington. One such drive is hosted by Ron and Margie Danz. They purchased a vintage 1935 fire truck as a gift for their grandchildren 10 years ago and realized that there was a need that they could fill in their community.
They began an event that they called the Fill the Fire Truck Toy Drive and started a partnership with the Kirkland and Bellevue Fire Departments. They collect toys by hosting a toy drive party where they ask guests to bring unwrapped gifts which the fire department will distribute to their local community centers that they partner with.
“We have many families that will tell us that they intentionally take their children with them to do the shopping because they want their children to learn that not every toy that they see or would like to have for themselves is something that that they can get for themselves,” Margie Danz said.
Danz continues by stating it is important for children to understand that there are less fortunate families, and this is a good way for them to learn that concept.
This year their family’s toy drive party will be hosted on Dec. 8 and will feature a variety of activities, including photos with Santa and crafts.
Another local organization with a gift drive is Santa’s Castle. This organization specifically benefits low-income military families that are based out of Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Pierce County. Santa’s Castle was founded in 1994 by Diane Gravatt and Janet Gibson, who realized that there was a need to support members of the military during the holidays. Santa’s Castle is run entirely by volunteers and funded by donors. Service members are referred to the program by their chain of command, the Chaplain or community agencies.
The service member is then partnered with a volunteer who helps them to pick out items for their children. Through this program, each child receives around $150 of toys, books, board games and more.?
“Each year we serve between 1000 and 2000 Service Members which is between 2000 to 4000 children. This season we are at the high end of our range and to meet that need, we need the support of our community. People can support us financially or with volunteer time. It takes? a lot of toys to fill our shelves and to keep them full throughout our giving season,” Executive Director and President of Santa’s Castle Donna Handoe told The Ledger.
Last year, Santa’s Castle was able to assist 1300 military families and provided over $520,000 worth of gifts and stocking stuffers.
“We are run entirely by volunteers, so people can also support us by being an elf. Elves are our volunteers that guide our Service Members through their shopping experience and make their time at the Castle enjoyable. We could not meet our mission without the elf power,” Handoe said.
Volunteers can apply on their website in order to help out with toy distributions that occur on Dec. 2-6 and 9-13 on Joint Base Lewis-McChord and Dec. 17 and 18 at Naval Base Kitsap.
Other local toy drives include the KIRO-& Cares Toy Drive that supports The Salvation Army and Toys for Tots, the Les Schwab FOX 13 Drive, the Seattle Storm Toy Drive that benefits children in local hospitals and many more.
There are also many national organizations that provide support for low-income families around the holidays, including The Salvation Army, Toys for Tots and Operation Santa. The Salvation Army provides something called an Angel Tree, which has tags on them that represent a specific child and their needs for Christmas. The Angel Trees are found at most Walmart locations and gifts can also be purchased online.?
UWT also has a holiday gift drive, UWT/YMCA Gives. This program matches families in need with a donor, whether it be an individual, student organization or UWT Department. The gifts must be dropped off by 5 p.m. on Dec. 9 and there is a gift wrapping party the following day. Gift distribution will occur from Dec. 11 to Dec. 20 at the Center for Student Involvement.
“The personal benefit of donating either gifts or time during the holiday season is joy. Giving back to the community is the best way to feel a sense of purpose and to be connected to others. Giving truly impacts the lives of all involved; you make a difference by showing support to someone who could use a helping hand and you boost your own personal happiness and well-being,” Handoe said.
