Angel Tree

A 2011 Update

December 17. He jumped into the air, clicked his heels together and yelled "Santa Claus came, Santa Claus came" to his little nephew Jason as he helped him carry his presents to the car. The presents for Jason and the other 61 children were purchased by you, our wonderful, giving congregation.

Thank you to everyone who adopted an angel or donated money for an angel. A special thanks to Methodist Women and Womanspace for their donations. Each child received one present and a gift bag (that we referred to as the stocking stuffers). In the gift bag we included school note books, holiday pens, pencils, and erasers, small card games and last but not least candy! These gift bags were made possible by generous donation from Tex Powell.

We pass on to you all the little thank yous that we heard as the children received their presents. A special thank you to my angels, Jo, Barbara and Jeanette who again earned their wings with Project Angel Tree for without them I would be lost.

Blessings until next year,

Sheri La Roche

A 2010 Update

December 18. Rain, sleet or snow — just as the mail goes through so did Angel Tree.

Buckets of rain and wet clothes were accompanied by umbrellas, scarves and hoods.

Mommies, Daddies, Grandmas, Grandpas and other family members came forth to pick up the gifts.

The look of awe on one mother's face as her smile lit up the room with joy was worth all the work that goes into the Angel Tree project.

A tug at your heart moment: Two small children pulling on their mother's arm asking her over and over "are all these gifts for me?"

As I played Santa's helper, none of this would have been possible without my elves, Jo and Jeanette.

In addition, special thanks to all of you who adopted an angel (and shopped all by yourself or had Sheri shop for you). We also made 57 bags (like Christmas stockings) for the children. Each bag had candy, school supplies, books and a small toy. These would not have been possible without the wonderful cash donations from you.

So to all my Angels, blessings to you until next season,

Sheri La Roche

The Invitation

Sheri issued the following invitation to our congregation in November 2010...

Project Angel Tree is coming real soon. You will be able to pick your own angel. You can pick one, two or seven angels. There are no limits on angels. You can shop till you drop while buying clothes, books or toys. Or you can pick an angel and have me shop for you. If it was not for your kindness these children would not have anything to open at Christmas.

OUMC has the honor of purchasing gifts for children who have a mommy or daddy serving time in jail. OUMC also has the honor of helping some of the families in our Latino ministry and our neighborhood whose parents are out of work. Without OUMC's help there would be no Christmas joy for these children. I am very happy that we can put a twinkle in their eyes and a smile on their lips.

I should have the children's names available for you to pick up at church Sunday, November 21. Gifts will be distributed to the children's families on Saturday, December 18.

In Case You Didn't Know About Angel Tree

The Angel Tree program is run by thousands of churches and dedicated volunteers across the nation working alongside Prison Fellowship staff. Here's a brief description of the process:

• Prisoners sign-up: Through prison chaplains and in-prison sign-up events, Angel Tree receives applications from incarcerated parents that would like our help in sending Christmas gifts to their children.
• Churches are registered: We simultaneously recruit churches across the nation to partner with us in raising up volunteers that will be the "hands and feet" to deliver gifts and the Gospel message to each child.
• Children are assigned: Each church assigns a church coordinator (ours is the fantastic Sheri LaRoche) to manage its volunteer efforts. Angel Tree assigns children to churches, and church members then sponsor the children. These sponsors purchase gifts for the children and prepare to share the Gospel message with them.
• Gifts and the gospel message are delivered: The week before Christmas, the gift—along with a personal message from the incarcerated parent—are delivered through home visits or church parties. Each gift is paired with the sharing of the Gospel, introducing the children to the true meaning of Christmas—Jesus Christ.