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From coats to canned goods, toys to pet supplies, there are lots of ways to help spread some holiday cheer in Richmond this year.
1. Salvation Army Angel Tree Program
The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree Program benefits low-income children and seniors in the Richmond area. Local malls like Short Pump Town Center and Regency Square Mall will have a Christmas tree decorated with angels representing people in need. Members of the public can choose an angel to receive donations of new clothing and gifts for Christmas day. The Salvation Army provides gifts during Christmas to about 3,000 families and about 5,000 children across Central Virginia each holiday season.
2. Coats for Kids
The Coats for Kids coat drive, sponsored by Puritan Cleaners, collects new or used coats throughout the holiday season. Puritan Cleaners will repair coats that need it and delivers the coats to The Salvation Army to give out to needy families in the Richmond area. Puritan has collected more than 400,000 coats since 1988.
3. Toys for Tots
The goal for the Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program is to collect new and unwrapped toys throughout the holiday season, and give these toys as Christmas gifts to less fortunate children in local communities. There are multiple toy drop-off locations in the Richmond area.
4. Richmond Christmas Mother Fund
Donations to the Christmas Mother Fund go toward winter coats, meals, toys, and other support for families in need in the Richmond community. This year, Becky Massey is the 2016 Christmas mother and will lead the efforts of the Christmas Mother fund for the holiday season. Massey has long philanthropic involvement in Richmond cancer-fighting campaigns and is a cancer survivor herself.
5. Richmond Friends of the Homeless
This organization supports the homeless community throughout the year by providing a hot lunch every Monday through Friday at Broomfield CME Church. They serve between 200 and 300 meals each day. The organization serves holiday meals on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter. Get involved by making a financial contribution, becoming part of a group to serve a hot meal or volunteering time to help with holiday children’s parties.
6. FeedMore
Richmond-based FeedMore is Central Virginia's primary hunger-relief organization. It includes programs like the Central Virginia Food Bank, Meals on Wheels, the Mobile Pantry and Kids Café. FeedMore provides 51,000 meals every day to people in 34 counties across Virginia. This holiday season they need volunteers to donate food by donating to their local food pantry, deliver food through Meals on Wheels, volunteering at the community kitchen to make meals for Meals on Wheels and other programs, financial donations or volunteering at the food distribution center.
7. Noah’s Children
Noah’s Children is a local organization that helps the needs of infants and children, up to age 18, who are diagnosed with life-threatening or life-limiting illnesses. This holiday season they are seeking volunteers to pick out and deliver toys, prepare and deliver meals for families, and help prepare holiday dinners.
8. Local Animal Shelters
To help the animals living in shelters this holiday season, Richmond Animal League and the Richmond SPCA are accepting financial donations and physical donations to their wish lists. The lists include items like food, fleece cat beds, paper towels, step stools and gift cards to stores such as Petco, Martin's and Michael’s.
RAL is also hosting its sixth annual Operation Silent Night, where the shelter’s goal is for all of its animals to find a home during the holidays. From Dec. 9 to Dec. 23, all adoption fees are reduced to $10. The public can also foster a pet from Dec. 23-26. On Dec. 23, RAL will host a ceremony where they light up the shelter with luminarias and listen to the silence of an empty shelter, celebrating that each shelter animal has a home for the holidays. The event starts at 5:30 p.m., and guests can purchase luminarias for a minimum donation of $20.
