Every November, Anne Hunter’s eldest daughter eagerly asks if her mother has signed up for Operation Christmas Miracle yet. It’s the Falls Church, Virginia, family’s holiday tradition to give back to the community.
Once a year for the past eight years, Hunter has donated gifts, toys and a winter coat to three local children in need through Central Union Mission, a nonprofit social services organization that has six locations in Washington, D.C. Those “Christmas kids” correspond in age to her own three children, ages 12, 10 and 7, who are very involved in the process of giving.
Like many families do this time of year, Hunter’s family has seen how giving can have an impact on children in many different ways.
Across the DMV this season, we look at the positive ways giving can shape the giver, how families can make giving a personal experience for their kids—by supporting other kids like them—and the ways in which the recipient’s holiday season can change for the better.
Three different experiences of giving in the DMV: Operation Christmas Miracle, SO Kids SOAR and Light Up the Season demonstrate how families can get involved this December.
Operation Christmas Miracle
Each year, Hunter’s family receives a note from Central Union Mission with each child’s name, age, gender and some of their Christmas wishes. The mom of three takes her kids to the store and lets them pick out a few toys and games from the lists their “Christmas buddy” provided.
“It’s really for my kids to get an understanding of giving back, and knowing there’s other kids out there that might not have as much as we do and they can’t just go to Target and buy a new coat when they need it, or buy a new LEGO set for their birthday,” Hunter says. “It’s been cool because my kids get really into it.”
Hunter’s kids see giving back as a fun tradition—Hunter says her eldest daughter loves shopping and helping others.
“‘I like that they always like LEGOs,’” Hunter says, sharing a quote from her son.
It’s fun for Hunter’s kids to see the wish lists and find common interests, such as playing with slime or watching “Paw Patrol.” “They see all kids are alike in a lot of ways,” she says.
Volunteering is also good for a child’s mental health, as it inspires gratitude and positive feelings, says Dr. Helen Egger, a child and adolescent psychiatrist.
“It’s been good to give my kids a way to not just think of Christmas as ‘What am I going to get for Christmas?’ but it becomes very much a ‘What can I get for this other kid for Christmas?’” Hunter says.
She started this family tradition because Hunter herself was raised to give back to her community. Growing up, her church did a similar initiative known as “The Angel Tree.”
Hunter appreciates that Operation Christmas Miracle asks for winter coats or gift cards rather than solely toys because she likes the idea of “taking care of a family more.” Central Union Mission also includes requests for age-appropriate Bibles, such as “My First Bible” or “The Jesus Storybook Bible”—the organization is faith-based.
Faith plays a role in how Hunter is raising her kids: “Everyone matters to God whether they have a lot or not,” she explains.
She wants her children to know the importance of giving back to the community.
“[My kids] live a fairly privileged life, and they could potentially go through life and not notice or see that there are people in need. Just because of the area we’re in and the school they go to, they aren’t necessarily aware that there is need around them,” Hunter says. “But that’s a very real part of the world we live in, and I want my kids to know that.”
SO Kids SOAR
Also giving back to the community this season are members of So Kids SOAR (SKS), a D.C.-based nonprofit that aims to empower youth with physical and developmental disabilities. The organization’s annual holiday celebration, this year on Dec. 7, allows parents and kids to engage in philanthropic activities—the largest of which is wrapping gifts for unhoused, foster or low-income youth ages 3 to 19.
SKS donates the wrapped presents to local shelters the nonprofit has worked with for the past decade, according to its executive director, Glenda Smith, including DC Metropolitan Foster & Adoptive Parent Association and Progressive Life Center.
Other activities include packing backpacks with art and school supplies for Kids in Need of Defense, stuffing Kong balls with dog treats for Montgomery County Partners for Animal Wellbeing, creating English-Japanese flashcards for Hands On Tokyo and making hygiene kits for Comfort Cases and sensory kits for Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center Pediatrics.
The Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy venue, where the celebration takes place, is “very accessible.” Each participant gets paired with a volunteer to help them one-on-one with the various activities.
“It’s teaching them that they can make an impact in the community, that despite any challenge they might have, they can still make a difference in their world,” Smith says of volunteering together with children who have disabilities.
Smith says some participants have gone through the SKS programming and return to holiday celebrations to volunteer alongside the “next generation” of kids with disabilities.
“Our mission is really to create this cycle of empowerment,” she adds.
Light Up the Season
Just down the street, eight young patients at Children’s National Hospital this year get to make their dreams a reality at the annual Light Up the Season year-end celebration organized by the Founders Auxiliary Board, which is held at the Four Seasons Hotel in D.C.
The eight “child patient ambassadors” work with Kehoe Designs, a Chicago-based company which implements these children’s ideas for holiday decor and brings their aspirations to life at the Four Seasons for the duration of the festivities, says Jennifer Diamond Haber, the vice president of fundraising for the Founders Auxiliary Board.
Those in attendance kick off the six-week celebration with a Christmas tree lighting on Dec. 4, followed by holiday programming and youth performances. The event raises money for Children’s National’s Fund for Every Child, which supports pediatric care for patients, and the Founders Auxiliary Board’s Major Gifts and Annual Grants programs.
Patients and their families can enjoy “Teddy Bear Teas with Dr. Bear,” the hospital’s ursine mascot, a visit from Santa and ballet performances, extra special since some of the patients may have never spent a holiday season away from home.
“Any time a child is sick, it’s challenging, and it’s extraordinary to be able to bring joy and the spirit of the season to all kids and all families, regardless of their faith, at the holidays,” Diamond Haber says. “It’s just a wonderful way of feeling like you’re giving back and making a difference in a really meaningful way.”
