Holiday Giving Opportunities 2009

Brookwood will be helping the clients of the First Light women’s shelter during the holiday season. Their mission is to work with homeless women and their children to create hospitality in a safe and nurturing community, to encourage them to find hope, to seek opportunity, and to grow spiritually, thereby achieving their full potential. In 2008, the agency served over 1,040 women and children. To learn more about First Light, click here.

Cold Weather & Basic Needs: The agency is currently in need of trial-size toothpaste, lotion, cough drops, socks, jackets, and coats. They do not usually accept clothing donations, but their ladies are cold and in need of these items. New or gently-used items are great and very much appreciated. We are gathering these items now as cold weather has arrived!

Thanksgiving-in-a-Box: Ever wonder what it might be like to prepare a Thanksgiving meal for your family in an efficiency apartment kitchen that is barely equipped with a stove and refrigerator, much less a roasting pan for the turkey? How about trying to purchase the ingredients with a monthly allotment of food stamps….and still have enough left over to eat the rest of the month? The cost of the turkey and roasting pan alone can bust through even the most generous allotment. And forget trying to wrap the leftovers in Saran wrap or ziploc bags—they aren’t even covered by food stamps. And when you are a single homeless woman, trying to reenter society, your wages—if you have any—don’t do much to cover the deficit.

This is the situation faced by each of the ladies in the transitional apartments sponsored by First Light, our local emergency women’s shelter. Each lady would dearly love to be able to prepare a holiday meal for their family and friends, a task that is unthinkable with their limited resources. Let’s face it: without significant help, a traditional Thanksgiving dinner just won’t happen for any of these ladies, or their loved ones. So….here’s where YOU can help!

Brookwood is sponsoring a THANKSGIVING MEAL-IN-A-BOX drive to help each of these ladies prepare a Thanksgiving dinner for their loved ones.

The blueprint is simple:

SIGN UP in Sunday School, or at the church office, to provide a meal-in-a-box.
GATHER a box, or better yet, buy a large foil turkey-roasting pan from the grocery store (a foil roasting pan needs to be included in any event, as the apartments are not equipped with large roasting pans).
FILL the box or pan with NON-PERISHABLE food items that are used for a traditional Thanksgiving meal. Here are some ideas, but a complete grocery list will be available when you sign up: Stuffing mixes, cranberry sauce, canned yams, canned green beans, mushroom soup, can of french-fried onions, canned pumpkin pie mix, evaporated milk, other canned vegetables, ziploc baggies, foil. Anything NON-PERISHABLE you think might be useful in preparing a Thanksgiving meal for 6 to 8 people (remember, leftovers can always be stored). Get your kids involved in the shopping!
BUY a $15.00 gift certificate, preferably from Wal-Mart (most of the ladies have access to a Wal-Mart) that can be used to purchase a turkey. Include it in the box.
DELIVER your box to Brookwood on the SUNDAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING (NOV. 22). Or before, if you will be out-of-town.

Here's the shopping list:

$15 gift certificate for a turkey (preferably from Wal-Mart, since most of the ladies have access to a Wal-Mart)
Disposable foil roasting pan (could also be used to box your other items)
Box of mashed potato mix
Large can of evaporated milk
Can or 2 of yams
Can or 2 of cranberry sauce
Two or three cans of green beans
Can of french-fried onions
Can of condensed cream of mushroom soup
Box of stuffing mix
Box or pouch of pie crust mix
Large can of PUMPKIN PIE MIX (NOT the straight canned pumpkin)
Box of Dream Whip whipped topping
Box of hot roll mix
Foil and Ziploc baggies (food stamps do not cover these items, and the ladies would love to be able to store leftovers)
Anything else you would like to include would also be great…marshmallows, drink mixes, nuts, Jell-o are some other ideas.
Be creative, or just stick with the list above….either way, your help is most appreciated.

You can make a HUGE difference in someone else's life this Thanksgiving...your gift will allow women who do not have the blessings of a permanent home, and who have had to endure many hardships and sorrows experience the dignity and joy of preparing a holiday meal for their loved ones.

Angel Tree for Christmas: The names and sizes of First Light clients will be placed on ornaments. Brookwood families will select an ornament and gift the ladies with a sweatsuit . This project begins immediately following Thanksgiving. Stay tuned for more details.

For more information on any of these efforts, please contact Rosanna Tsivourakis at 205-967-0441.