The Darien, Connecticut Corporate Visions Team of Diane Frate and Lisa Slen had the opportunity to assist Person-2-Person with their “Be a Santa” program on March 10th, 2016.
This program provides Person-2-Person with new household items and clothing. An inventory of these items is kept year round so they are able to help families moving from shelters into apartments.
“Be a Santa” goods also are handy in times of crisis such as a house fire when a family is forced to start over again.
The goods are donated by employees of large local corporations. This program works along the same line as The Salvation Army with their Angel Tree donations, only this is year round. Employees select tags and shop throughout the year for the suggested goods, then are collected and brought to Person-2-Person to distribute.
The first part of the morning was sorting through baskets filled with new children’s pajamas. They were sized and sorted by gender. From there it was on to the attic where new kitchen items were reorganized, condensed, and placed into new clothing bins.
Also, on this particular day, Diane and Lisa were asked to assist in choosing clothing for a Syrian refugee family that arrived in the United States the previous day with nothing but the clothes on their backs. The family consisted of a widowed mother and five children ranging in age from three to twelve. They were temporarily housed in a convent in Wilton, Connecticut.
The following morning, the family along with an interpreter, were transported to Person-2-Person where the Staff presented them with clothing and household items. Then the biggest surprise of all was when they introduced them to their new home in Stamford, Connecticut.
This was an amazing, wonderful, and rewarding experience/feeling to “leave a mark” on the lives of this young family.
{written by Diane Frate}
