The Joy of Giving

It has been a beautiful season of giving here at Friends of the Children – Phoenix. Earlier this month, youth enrolled in our program and their siblings were invited by Executive Council Charities to attend a holiday shopping day. Every youth walked the store, paired with a sponsor to talk and shop with! It was a joyous experience full of too many beautiful moments to count. We wanted to share some of our favorite moments with you and say an enormous thank you to Executive Council Charities, who have worked for months to raise the money to do this not only for the youth enrolled in our program but for all their siblings, supporting the entire household in such a wonderful way.

The older sibling of a youth in our program, for example, seemed very shy at the start of the experience. In a store he wasn’t familiar with, talking with people he didn’t know was definitely outside of his comfort zone. He was paired with an elderly couple and over the course of the experience we watched him go from shy to effusive. By the end of their time in the store they were hugging each other over and over, taking pictures together, and talking about how they hoped to get to see each other again next year!

One of the boys enrolled in our program is a diabetic who is very responsible about checking and managing his needs, especially considering his young age. Without realizing it, he was paired with an adult who is also diabetic! They realized their shared experience when one of them pulled out their insulin monitor and immediately bonded over the discovery. With big smiles on their faces, they bought little chocolate bars together to have with them “just in case” while shopping.

Another youth wears glasses and unfortunately breaks them often. A new pair isn’t in his family’s budget, and he arrived to the shopping day with them almost hanging off of his face. The generous individual who sponsored his shopping trip is also now in contact about supporting a new pair of glasses for him, insistent that he wants the youth to not have to worry about his glasses anymore.

There were so many sweet moments throughout the day. A young girl was ecstatic to find a doll with the same skin tone as her and didn’t let it go for the rest of her time shopping! Another bought the biggest container of strawberries she could find, saying that they were her favorite and they’re never able to have them at home. Two brothers found monster trucks to play with together, the older brother encouraging his younger sibling to show off the truck he had found. A handful of older teens who attended with their younger siblings all purchased bouquets of roses. When we asked what they were for, they answered that they were bringing them home to their moms.

After their shopping experience, youth went to play in a Winter Wonderland area complete with bounce houses, a dunk tank where they could dunk the Grinch, holiday treats, lunch, and fresh donuts. The shopping sponsors, including several of our board members, hung out with the group as well, commenting that they felt that they were the ones who had benefited the most from the experience.

We can’t thank Executive Council Charities enough for supporting this experience for the youth and their families. We are especially grateful that siblings were able to be included and we’re looking forward to hearing stories of what they all get up to with their new toys and other purchases. As you celebrate the holiday season, we hope you find joy in both giving and receiving. Happy Holidays!