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I am writing this early, and during our busiest week of the entire year. This is my monthly message to our community-to our donors, our volunteers and our ACO family. Usually, I would wrap up the month with what’s critical to ACO at the time, or as in this case as it is the end of year email to you.
But so much is on my mind as we begin this week before Christmas. This IS the busiest week all year long for All Community Outreach. It is also the worst week AND the best week. Let me explain...
The week before Christmas, after a few crazy weeks of collecting toys from a very generous community, our staff and volunteers begin organizing the ACO North Pole for one massive toy distribution to help local families struggling to provide for their children during the holidays. We have 836 children registered and their parents are counting on us.
Last week, in a panic realizing we didn’t have nearly as many toys as we usually have and certainly not enough for more than 800 children, we (ACO) reached out to the community in a plea for help. I’ve been working the ACO North Pole for more than 20 years, and we never had such a shortage of toys as we did last Friday. And in true fashion of this amazing community responding, over the weekend and continuing this week the toys have been coming in. I feel confident that by the time you read this that we will have enough new toys and gifts to send home with parents to relieve their holiday stress and put smiles on their kiddos’ faces. THANK YOU!
In addition to toys, YOU continue to donate groceries to the ACO Food Pantry. The 1000+ local families who would be facing hunger during the holidays if not for ACO and YOU, will be going home with a carload of groceries, including fresh fruits, veggies, dairy and meat. THANK YOU!
I just walked through the ACO North Pole and made the comment that the ACO Elves are hard at work! And they are! I held the door open as two of our awesome pantry volunteers were rolling a cart of food from our storage area down to the pantry to continue stocking the shelves. I can hear from my desk the voices of busy front desk volunteers answering call after call from families in need of emergency assistance with rent and utilities. VOLUNTEERS, THANK YOU!
What makes this the best week of the year? From my viewpoint I see our community come together with donations and their time because they care about their neighbors that they may not know personally but they make it personal to ease the lives of local families facing crisis situations that are jeopardizing their family’s safety, health and happiness.
So you ask, then what makes it the worst week? It’s the tug (a yank!) at my heart to know that there are families here in our community that are struggling. It’s hard to hear the despair in their voices and to see the distress on their faces. It is hard to imagine that there is so much need in this amazing county. This is the worst week for many parents, who have tried to make it through the month on their own resources and are realizing they will not have the rent money or enough food to last until payday or enough extra cash to buy toys for their kids. And it is just days before Christmas...
I hope that each family in need will find their way to ACO, and my Christmas wish is that ACO will always have the resources to provide for those in need- with financial assistance for their emergencies, with programs and services to lead them to a path of stability and security, and with the staff to hold their hand through the process with compassion and empathy.
As the year comes to a close, I hope working together with you in 2025, hand in hand as ACO’s logo represents, we will continue to help our neighbors who so desperately need us. Those of you who donate monthly, thank you for continuing to give throughout the year. Those of you who give to our campaigns in the summer and holiday time, thank you for your commitment to support ACO’s mission.
Those of you needing a year-end tax donation for 2024, please remember ACO’s secure website for financial gifts until midnight on December 31st, and our address to mail that year-end postal dated check: 801 E. Main Street, Allen TX 75002.
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