Celebrating the holiday season at the haven of grace
Our holiday season began on November 23 with a full Thanksgiving meal prepared by Terri Bullard and the Women’s Group from Troy Assembly of God. These volunteers decorated The Haven classroom with festive tablecloths and centerpieces. They served a wonderful meal for all of the shelter residents and The Haven’s staff.
By the second week in December, Christmas preparations were in full swing at the shelter. The Haven’s door-decorating contest began on December 7 with lots of bows, garland, gift-wrapping tape and wrapping paper. The residents eagerly cut out pictures of their children to post on their doors and creatively arranged the Christmas crafting materials to transform their doors in just one
week. Board members Rita Cornett, Susan Cox, Sally Lemkemeier and Bren Souers, along with UMB Bank’s Gail Sneed, served as judges for the contest on December 14. Each mom’s door décor was so stunning that everyone received an award. Each mom was also given a $125 gift card to Burlington Coat Factory, courtesy of a very generous anonymous donor wanting to make sure all of the moms could buy a winter coat this year.
Following the door-decorating contest came the cookie baking! The Board members brought dough and baked a variety of cookies with The Haven’s residents. For lunch, staff members and residents enjoyed the cookies along with sandwiches and chips, also provided by the Board members.
The shelter residents participated in a holiday-themed Mom’s Night Out on December 8. The First Evangelical Free Church in Manchester performed “A Time for Christmas,” a Broadway-style musical with a dessert course. The staff and residents send a special thank you to Kathleen and Brian Bauer for their special attention and kindness at the event. The residents were also treated to several Christmas performances in the shelter as many caroling groups came to share music and holiday snacks. For the children, Mrs. Claus (a.k.a BeBe the Clown) made a stop at the shelter to read “The Night Before Christmas." Thank you to The Great Commission Church of God, The Antioch Baptist Church Sister to Sister group, Chara Tayler Gewells, Georgia Vaaler, Youhna Ayala, and Verna Braden for sharing their Christmas spirit with us this year.
Throughout the month of December, The Haven was blessed with an outpouring of community support for the Adopt-A-Family program. The program has been in place for the shelter residents for many years, but this year it was expanded to include The Haven’s Aftercare clients, too. The mothers made wish lists and donors responded by dropping off gifts by the cart-full! In total, 13 individuals from the community participated as adopters to purchase gifts for 12 of our families. Our corporate partner, TALX Corporation, adopted 24 more families. Additional gifts for nine Haven families were provided by Bonhomme Presbyterian Church. In order to leave plenty of time for gift wrapping, Aftercare clients were invited to pick up their presents a week before Christmas. Shelter residents had to remain curious about their gifts until Christmas Eve.
The Haven’s Christmas season culminated with a Christmas Eve celebration. Staff members led the shelter and apartment residents in singing carols and reading Scripture detailing the birth of Jesus before entering the classroom filled to the brim with gifts provided by the Adopt-A-Family program. Before opening a gift, each woman shared a special tradition she wished to start with her new family. Soon enough, the wrapping paper was torn off and both children and mothers smiled with delight at their presents.
The Haven staff and residents are very thankful for the generosity of our community. “I’m very grateful for everything I received at Christmas,” said a shelter resident. “I was given a bouncer, diapers, a baby tub and more things that I can use when my baby boy is born. My favorite gifts were a lotion set for myself and a newborn healthcare set for my baby.” Another shelter resident remarked, “Both of my children got clothes that will fit them. We didn’t have big enough clothes before, so it will be nice not to have to worry about that. I’m really glad my toddler received educational toys, too.”
After the unwrapping was finished, a light lunch was shared between staff and residents before all departed for their Christmas destinations.
Contact: Alison Zeller
Telephone: 314-621-6507
Email: azeller@havenofgracestl.org
