It's a Wrap! Indy Angel Tree Provides Christmas Gifts to 5,000 Children
Christmas is just around the corner, and for 5,000 central Indiana children the joy of Christmas morning will be greater than ever thanks to generous donors across the Indy metro area. These children are all part of the Indy Angel Tree program, which helps struggling families provide meaningful Christmas gifts for their children.
This fall, The Salvation Army worked with parents and guardians of these "Angels" to put together wish lists that included "something you want and something you need; something to wear and something to read." These wishes were compiled online, where donors could choose to "adopt" an Angel and shop for special Christmas gifts chosen just for that child.
Angel Trees with special QR codes that would link to the online adoption list were set up across central Indiana, including area malls and at the Festival of Trees in downtown Indianapolis at the Indiana History Center. Many businesses, churches, and other organizations also adopted groups of Angels, making it possible to adopt out all 5,000 Angels before the December 5 deadline!
On Friday, December 11, The Salvation Army delivered 1,325 bags of gifts to social service agencies around central Indiana to help facilitate getting the gifts to all of our Angel families. A drive-thru distribution came next at The Salvation Army's Fountain Square corps on December 14 & 15. Families who had signed up at the corps earlier in the fall returned during specific appointment times for a contactless pick-up of gifts for another 1,826 Angels. The final two days of distribution, December 16 & 17, took place on Indy's west side at The Salvation Army's Eagle Creek corps on High School Road. Gifts for the last 1,779 Angels were given to parents using a similar drive-thru model to minimize interactions between the families and Salvation Army volunteers and staff.
This program is only made possible through the generous donations of time, money, and gifts from the community. Thank you for helping The Salvation Army rescue Christmas for these central Indiana families!
Get an inside look at the Angel Tree program by checking out our photos on Flickr HERE. Live videos made during distribution are also viewable on the Facebook pages for The Salvation Army Fountain Square and The Salvation Army Eagle Creek.