There are many Hudson County organizations that work to ensure that every child has a present for Christmas. But this year, they required extra help from neighbors in Bergen County.
The center can use more help fulfilling requests this year.
Each year, a group called Volunteer Center of Bergen County collects gift requests from non-profit agencies in Bergen, Hudson, Passaic and Morris counties. The requests come from the families and individuals that they serve.
This year the center saw an overwhelming increase in the number of Hudson County agencies that applied for the program. About 22 Hudson County agencies submitted a “wish list” for 50 individuals and 77 families. People needing gifts are sometimes low-income, elderly, or have mental or physical disabilities.
“This is a great project for a group, to collect or raise funds to help others enjoy a happy holiday,” said Janet Sharma, executive director of the Volunteer Center of Bergen County.
Helping neighbors Two of the biggest request lists came from Hold My Hand Day Care Center in Union City, which requested gifts for 30 individuals, and St. Bridget’s Early Childhood Learning Center in Jersey City, which requested gifts for 12 individuals and 12 families.
“Our family worker was in Newark attending a session, and [the center] was giving out information about All Wrapped Up,” said Anna Maria Flores, director of Hold My Hand Day Care. “My organization serves a number of children in Union City from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. that come from very low income families and don’t have many other resources.”
This the first time that Hold My Hand Day Care is participating in the program, and all 30 kids have sponsors for the holidays.
“The [volunteer center] was excellent and they responded very well,” said Flores. “They asked us for sizes, and asked what we knew about the family.”
The children at Hold My Hand Day Care Center range from two months to 4 years old.
“Some of the things that are asked for are toys, clothing, and gift certificates for food,” said Maureen McCormick, marketing manager for the center. “All the families and individuals are screened by the referring agencies to confirm the accuracy of their needs and requests.”
How to be a sponsor After the wish lists have been submitted, the center asks donors to sponsor or “adopt” a person or a family, and purchase the items on their lists. The center is seeking the help of individuals and groups of all kinds to become donors.
“Each year the request for assistance grows, so we are reaching out to the community to create a base of donors who can step up and fill the need,” Sharma.
“[As of last Monday] we have received gift requests for 870 low income and single parent families, and have already matched about 500 of them,” said McCormick. “We know people have been more than generous in responding to the recent disasters here in the U.S. and throughout the world. We are hoping that people can reach out one more time to help people locally.”
Donors receive a profile of their adoptive family or individual, including first names, ages, a brief description of their circumstances, and a wish list or gift ideas. They are also provided with the contact agency they will be working with.
“Since all the adoptions must be completed by Friday, Dec. 16, at this time we are asking [for those still interested in helping] for cash donations and generic gift cards to places like Target, Shop Rite or Sears,” said McCormick.
People interested in making donations may call the Volunteer Center of Bergen County at (201) 489-9454. Donations made must be received no later than this Monday and Tuesday. For more information, visit www.bergenvolunteer.org.