Raising Money for Christmas {Last Three Months of the Year}
It’s no surprise that I LOVE CHRISTMAS. I do. I can’t hide that fact. Some people ask why I like it so much. This is kind of hard to put into words but I’ll try. There is something so magical around the time of year between Thanksgiving and Christmas. There is something in the air. The air is crisp, which it is also known I hate cold weather, but that time of year you know you need snow so that Santa can deliver his presents. Duh!
But there is a spirit among people. Yes, a lot of people are stressed out by Christmas and they say that the suicide rate is up around this time of year, but there are a lot of happy people around this time of year. They are out and about shopping for just the perfect present for their loved ones and friends. There is Christmas lights and Christmas music and little kids getting so excited that Santa will visit.
That is the thing though… Little kids get extremely excited about the thought of Santa visiting. Some little kids though are sad at this time of the year. Their family is going through some struggle and the thought of Christmas is far from their mind. That’s where Santa’s helpers come in to play.
There are organizations that are working year round to make sure that every little kid knows what Christmas is and knows that they aren’t forgotten. Santa’s helpers run fundraisers and ring bells, and everything else to raise money for presents for those deserving little kids.
I’m sure we all know this, right? So why am I discussing this? Well, because the last few years I have been working with one of those organizations. I have been volunteering my time to help raise money. To help raise awareness. All little kids are deserving all year round, but I want them to know my favorite time of year and have fond memories of it just like I have.
I listen to Christmas music year round. I watch Christmas movies year round. I’m kind of an oddball I guess… But I know there is a time and place and we need to not wish our life away to get to Christmas and we need to celebrate every day and every holiday for what it is. It is there for a reason. And now my thoughts are going wonky… let’s get back on track. The real reason I’m thinking about all of this today…
The real reason for the post…
In a couple weeks, the organization I’m working with is having a Chili Cook-off. This year will make 5 years this is in practice. Every year we set a goal of how much we want to raise. The first 2 years we exceeded that goal. The other 2 years we’ve at least met the goal. And the best part is the more we get the word out, the more money we are raising. Every year we’ve exceeded the previous year’s total. These are all good things.
We’ve started advertising for the 5th annual Chili Cook-off. Santa is on our flier because we are Newton County Christmas for Kids. As the flier has been passed around Facebook, we recently got a comment. One that has been bothering me. Maybe they were trying to be funny. Maybe they were being serious. Either way, this comment has been bothering me. The comment was something in regard to, wait your turn Santa, we haven’t even had Halloween.
I’ve stated before, in this post, in fact, I love Christmas. I also love other holidays. I really do. My infatuation with Christmas is the spirit in the air. We don’t have that year-round sadly. Okay, so… I know we haven’t had Halloween. We haven’t had Thanksgiving. BUT… we have to raise that money now so that we have time to go present shopping so those kids don’t have to go without for CHRISTMAS.
If you think back to Christmas stories, Santa’s helpers work in the shop YEAR-ROUND. Just think of the movie Elf. They get all excited when all the presents are finished for that year’s Christmas and then the head elf announces it is time to get ready for next year. All the elves get excited and they are ready to work. Santa’s elves work year round.
Thank you, Santa’s Helpers.
Promoting the spirit of Christmas year-round isn’t a bad thing. Raising money year round so that you aren’t scrambling at the last minute isn’t a bad thing. Helping children experience Christmas isn’t a bad thing. This is what the spirit of Christmas is about. So whether that comment was a joke or serious, it has been bothering me.
I hope that everyone takes each and every holiday and makes it special. Let children, whether yours or neighbors, know what these holidays are about. Let’s unite this country back together and make the rest of the year spectacular. There has been a lot of heartache in the last year. These last three months are what make it all worth wild.
Happy Halloween, Happy Thanksgiving, and Merry Christmas.