Christmas Party

Our church has adopted a school in a nearby town that has students from predominately poorer families. Something like 90% of the schoolchildren gets free or reduced-price lunches. The architecture of the school reminded me of Dufroq Elementary in Baton Rouge. It must have been built in the 1930's, and has art deco styling and many layers of paint on the ceramic block walls.

So our church puts on a Christmas Party each year for some 60 children, representing about 45 families from the school who are most in need. Today was the party, and my daughter and I went to help. The children can come and "shop" (for free) and get gifts to give to their family members. I worked in the Gift Wrap area, and tried not to hold up the line with perfectionism. ;-) The kids got to choose their wrapping paper, bows, and write gift tags, if they were able (some children were in Head Start, and as young as 4 years old). Others spoke very little English. But they were all thrilled to be there, and some were old enough to help wrap their gifts.

The preteen group that my daughter is in acted as "buddies" for these kids, getting to know them, helping them shop, taking them to games, crafts, gift wrapping, and the food areas, and just hanging out with them. My daughter had a little 6 year old girl assigned to her. They shopped for her mother and baby sister. They were best of friends when the party ended!

There's something about showing love to complete strangers that chokes me up. It's one thing to be nice to people. It's another thing to serve them. Especially when they can do nothing for you in return.... or think they can't. Seeing a big grin on their faces when they see their sack full of wrapped presents for their whole family is thanks enough.

There was Christmas music, pizza, soft drinks, cookies, Bingo games, and crafts where the children could make Christmas tree ornaments. I think they all had a good time. And each family left with a clothes basket full of food, donated by another group at the church. I saw boxes of cold cereal, oatmeal, peanut butter, canned goods, shampoo, detergent, hams, macaroni and cheese mixes, among other things, all ready to go home to these families who are struggling. It was a good day, and if anyone were to get caught up in a shopping frenzy in their own world, all they need to do is come work an event like this. You get jerked back to what's important very quickly.