One of our great donors tells why it was important for her to participate in this year’s Holiday Wishes program, where individual, organizations, corporations or community groups adopted families at Doorways to provide for the holiday and critical needs:
Our intern, Ugie, checks out all the great donations as part of our Holiday Wishes program
In anticipation of the holiday season and as I reflected on the past year, I couldn’t help but to feel overcome with gratitude for the many blessings in my life – my family the biggest one of all.
A little over a year ago, my husband and I welcomed our first child, a baby girl, for whom our love continues to grow in ways beyond our wildest comprehension. I thought to myself not only how lucky we are to have a place to call home and sound employment, but also how fortunate it is that we are able to provide for our daughter – from ongoing daycare costs to the (very quickly) accruing costs that come with simply raising a child, let alone all of the “extras” that we often love to provide to our children, especially during the holidays.
At the core of each and every parent is a desire to give to their children, to provide for them and to ensure they are well-cared for. Unfortunately, for too many mothers in our area even the most basic provisions – a safe and stable home, one that is free of violence – is out of reach. No child should be without a home or fearful to come home each day. That’s simply not right. There are so many things that each of us can do to ensure that the needs of Arlington families do not go unmet (or unnoticed). For our family, participating in Doorways’ Holiday Wishes program was just one of those ways and we hope that it made a small difference to the family with whom we were matched.
Katie Pahner
Caroline Jones
