For the preschool children who attend the Two Rivers Head Start program’s Valley View School in St. Charles, the only Christmas and birthday presents that many receive are based on donations made possible through the Humanitarian Service Project.
For the parents of these children, it is life changing to receive these gifts, Sara Gray, a former teacher at the Valley View School said. “Receiving the gifts brings out tears, hugs, and thank yous from the children.”
Birthday boxes include four to five gifts, a box cake mix, plates, and napkins so the families can have a birthday celebration at home, she added. “At Christmas, every child receives a box filled with crayons, coloring books, books, puzzles, and toys.”
This will be the 36th year, the Humanitarian Service Project will be conducting its Christmas Offering. Last year, as part of the Christmas Offering, the group was able to give Christmas presents and food to more than 1,600 children and 125 seniors throughout DuPage and Kane Counties including the children who attend Head Start centers in both Aurora and St. Charles.
“The Christmas Offering is a huge undertaking and it requires many members of the community to step forward and help out,” she added. As part of the Christmas Offering each child receives at least three gifts.
Additional families receive either a holiday meal box that includes a turkey or boxes of food that include frozen meat and fresh produce.
Founded in 1979, the Humanitarian Service Project started in a spare room of Karole and Floyd Kettering’s Wheaton home, according to Kristin Maxwell, its executive director. “Karole wanted to make Christmas something more than giving gifts to just her own children.”
Today, the organization which is supported by about 1,000 volunteers operates numerous programs aimed at alleviating the pain and suffering that poverty brings to needy seniors and children living in DuPage and Kane Counties.
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Due to the great demand, there are currently many families on the waiting list to receive gifts as part of the Christmas Offering this year, Maxwell added. “We have a great need for toys for older children.”
“The sad part is most of the families we serve are working and in some cases both parents are working,” Maxwell said. “They still fall below the poverty line — many grossly below.”
There are a lot of folks living in these towns that are barely making it, she added.
At the St. Charles Valley View Head Start, Kristin, a former St. Charles resident, would sometimes drop the gifts off herself, Gray added. “She is very dedicated. She knows the plight of our kids’ lives.”
Doing home visits, Gray quickly realized that there are many area families doing without basic necessities. “Some families do not have beds, couches, kitchen chairs, or even food in the fridge,” she added.
“There is poverty here even though it may be hidden in the more affluent areas,” Gray said.
To qualify for the programs, the family’s income level must be below 125% of the federal poverty line.
“I have seen 14-year-old boys jump up and down after receiving a toy,” Maxwell said.