Staff Report
With Halloween already celebrated, attention at People Helping People is focused on preparations for its Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday programs.
PHP coordinates valley-wide programs to serve those in need at Thanksgiving and Christmas, and staff and volunteers are already very busy requesting donations of turkeys and recruiting additional volunteers to distribute turkeys and gifts.
To make these programs successful, PHP needs assistance from community members.
At Thanksgiving, PHP expands its regular biweekly food program to distribute turkeys and all the fixings to approximately 275 low-income families and seniors.
“The Santa Barbara County Foodbank is always hard pressed to collect enough turkey donations for all the nonprofits it supports,” said Justin Wilkins, who is responsible for the food program at PHP. “We have not received turkeys from them in a number of years. Therefore, if we cannot acquire sufficient donated turkeys from the community, we are forced to expend precious funds or turn families away. It is truly heartbreaking when we have to tell someone we just don’t have enough.”
Donations of turkeys and other traditional accompaniments, “turkey Bucks,” or cash gifts for those items can be made at PHP’s Service Center at 545 North Alisal Road in Solvang. PHP staff has already arranged for freezer and storage space so that PHP can begin taking donations immediately. You may also call Victor at 686-0295 to arrange a donation or even a pick-up.
Even before Thanksgiving arrives, PHP must also begin planning for its 24th annual valley-wide Christmas program named “Fulfill-A-Wish.” In the true spirit of the Christmas season, a large cast of PHP staff and volunteers partner with Toys 4 Tots to distribute toys, gifts and clothing to families throughout the area.
PHP is the only official organization in the Santa Ynez and Los Alamos Valleys designated by the Marine Corps Reserve to accept Toys 4 Tots donations.
More than $20,000 in goods and 30 volunteers are needed to help fulfill families’ most basic needs at Christmas. Last year, PHP’s Fulfill-A-Wish Program assisted 76 families, including more than 190 children.
PHP Associate Development Director Erica Valdés said that the overwhelming gratitude displayed by parents who are able to provide gifts on Christmas day for their kids makes the tremendous organizational effort worthwhile.
“It is a wonderful feeling to help so many celebrate who otherwise could not,” she said.
Many of those assisted are victims of domestic violence, single moms, and very low-income families working in the local service and agricultural industries, she added.
PHP will distribute Christmas gifts from the Fulfill-A-Wish Boutique, which this year will be at 141 E. Highway 246, Unit A, in the Buellton Park Center. The space is donated by JoAnn Taylor & The Lauren Company.
The Boutique, opened for the first time in 1995, will be decorated, stocked by volunteers, and be ready for operation on Dec. 21. On that day, families and individuals meeting the PHP eligibility criteria will be scheduled to visit the boutique and choose a limited number of gifts based upon the size of their family.
In addition to the hundreds of toys needed each year, the Fulfill-A-Wish program is especially in need of clothing for children, from infants to teens, and gifts suitable for teens. According to PHP staff, gift cards are a great option.
Individuals or groups interested in making a donation can receive a list of recommended items from PHP (805-686-0295 or marisela@syvphp.org), purchase any of the items on the wish list, and drop them unwrapped in one of the donation boxes around the community or deliver them to the People Helping People Offices at 545 North Alisal Road, Solvang.
Individuals and families can also help with a donation of wrapping paper or cash; placement of a donation box in a business; or by volunteering time.
For more information, call Marisela at 805-686-0295 or marisela@syvphp.org. Donations can also be mailed to PHP at P.O. Box 1478, Solvang, CA 93464.
