On December 16, 2021, the Kiwanis Club of Christiansburg hosted its Annual Children’s Christmas Event, bringing holiday joy to 50 local children.
Due to ongoing COVID concerns, the Club once again adapted the event format. Instead of gathering for the traditional pizza party and visit from Santa, parents and guardians participated in a drive-through distribution at the Christiansburg Recreation Center. Kiwanis members delivered a bag of toys, a bag of clothing, a box of food, and a ham for each child. For families unable to attend, Club members personally delivered the gifts to their homes to ensure that every child was served.
The process began weeks earlier when local schools provided the names of children in need, along with clothing sizes and toy preferences. Each Kiwanis member selected a child and purchased clothing items tailored to that child’s needs. Items included coats, sweaters, shoes, boots, socks, pants, shirts, underwear, and other essentials. On average, members spent more than $100 per child on clothing. All items were wrapped and delivered to the Recreation Center for distribution.
On the Saturday prior to the event, Kiwanis members conducted a 7:00 a.m. club-funded shopping trip at Walmart to purchase toys. The toys were stored at the generously donated B & B Storage facility before being transported to Christiansburg High School, where students in the Early Childhood Education Class wrapped and bagged them. The wrapped toys were then returned to storage until distribution day.
In total, the Club and its members invested more than $10,000 in this year’s project. Funds used to purchase toys and food were raised through the Club’s various fundraising events throughout the year.
The Kiwanis Club extends sincere thanks to Walmart and its employees, Bryan Rice and B & B Storage, the Early Childhood Education Class at Christiansburg High School, the Christiansburg Recreation Center, and all Kiwanis members who helped make this event a success.
Special recognition is given to Kiwanian Dennis Hunter, who chaired the event and coordinated the extensive effort required to make Christmas brighter for children in our community.
Through service projects like this, the Kiwanis Club of Christiansburg continues its mission of serving the children of the world—one child at a time.
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