The month of December flew by at A Kid’s Place as supporters from all over the Tampa Bay area joined together to make sure that hundreds of children in foster care had a holiday to remember. Not only were the 60 children at A Kid’s Place treated to the best Christmas they could have imagined, but an additional 1200 children from other nearby foster and support agencies were able to benefit from the generosity of our community as well. Truly, this is an example of how people have a heart for children in need, and we remain humbled and in awe of all that they provided.
Christmas morning at A Kid’s Place was a sea of wrapping paper as our children tore into their gifts. “This was the best Christmas I’ve ever had,” 16-year old Taylor remarked. “I used to think there was no Santa Claus, but today I believe!” Weeks ago, when the children filled out their holiday wish lists, they never expected that people from all over the community would go out and shop for exactly what each child wished for. Fifteen year old Lora asked for an Easy Bake Oven because she’d wanted one since she was little and had never gotten one. On Christmas morning, Lora opened a gift much more appropriate for an eight year old than a fifteen year old, but she was one happy kid! Since that blessed Christmas morning miracle, we have enjoyed a never-ending parade of delicious hockey puck shaped cakes, proudly delivered by a teen who finally gets to enjoy being a child.
Three year old Helena still delights, weeks after Christmas, in pushing her shopping cart around the sidewalk, each day sporting a different doll or stuffed animal. Six month old Jeremiah has learned to jump in his activity bouncer, and nine year old Alex has created so many Lego masterpieces that we’ve had to move him up to a higher level of difficulty. Happy children, happy memories!
The community came through for so many deserving children this holiday season, and from those of us on the front lines it’s easy to see what an impact it made. Perhaps Dr. Seuss said it best when he wrote, “Christmas will always be, as long as we stand heart to heart and hand to hand.” We thank the community for reaching out a helping hand and opening their hearts to foster children from all over the greater Tampa Bay area!
