Service Learning
November 2024 - Project B
Holiday Gifts for Children in Need
The holiday season is full of lights, loved ones, feasting, and, yes, gift giving across many different cultures, religions, and traditions. For some families, however, it is a time of increased financial stress and children going without. That's why each year around the holidays, we don our Santa hats and return to one of our favorite service learning projects to help change that for some local families.
Each November, we run a gift card drive as part of Marguerite's Place Holiday Giving Program. The recipients are mothers and their children who are experiencing homelessness and/or fleeing from unsafe domestic conditions. Through community donations, these mothers are provided the opportunity to do their own holiday shopping for their children, and also fulfill their needs for basic necessities. So, yet again, we invite you to join us in spreading warmth, security, and joy this holiday season!
Mission
Marguerite’s Place is on a mission to transform the lives of families working to achieve safety, stability and independence by fostering connection and providing holistic, individual and group support offerings, including transitional housing for women and their children, as well as early childhood education, and group-based community programs for all.
Programs
Transitional Housing
Safe, private apartments where mothers and children experiencing homelessness can stabilize and rebuild.
Early Childhood Education
Low-cost child care with social-emotional learning curricula that ensures children meet their developmental milestones.
Community Programming
Supportive group programming where parents develop success skills and build meaningful connections.
How to Engage Children
Service learning is not just about donating. In fact, the meaning is in the name. At SNA, students perform acts of service as a means of education about the greater world around us, the role we each play in our communities, and how we can all contribute to building a better future. We encourage families with children of all ages to further this discussion at home to engage their children as active participants in both acts of service and acts of giving.
1
Discuss the issue of poverty with your child, in an age-appropriate manner.
2
Encourage them to contribute an amount they deem fair to a gift card donation. If your child earns an allowance, you can talk about the power of giving, for both the giver and the recipient. How do they feel when they receive a gift? What about when they give one?
3
Make a project of it! Ask your child if they would like to make a card for a family recipient, because gift giving doesn't solely need to be about monetary value. Sometimes the act of spreading love and cheer can go a long way in letting others know they are not alone.