The Virginian-Pilot
©
The Salvation Army said Wednesday it will reopen a Christmas-toy giveaway for up to 350 Head Start children who were excluded from the program after Head Start leaders missed an application deadline.
"We heard an outcry today from people in the community who want to help this group directly," said Matthew Pochily, spokesman for the Salvation Army's Tidewater Area Command, which distributes toys for the Joy Fund, Toys for Tots and Angel Tree. "We'll be counting on their support to make this possible."
Pochily said Head Start will distribute applications this week that will be due on Monday. Eligible families will be invited to visit the agency's toy distribution center in Virginia Beach a week before Christmas to select gifts.
He said the additional toys will come from new contributions raised specifically for this purpose.
"It's not like we expect leftover toys from the regular program," he said. "We anticipate that the community will help us meet this additional need."
Lawanna Dowden, who directs Head Start for CDI, a Denver-based management company, said she was pleased that the Salvation Army agreed to reopen the program. Her organization had failed to file applications on behalf of its families by an Oct. 21 deadline.
"I don't know how that happened," Dowden said of the omission. "The person who handled this for the past 45 year left us in March, and no one at the time was thinking about Christmas, so it just slipped through the cracks."
With a second chance from the Salvation Army, "and with the support we're hearing from the community," she said, "I think all of our children will have a wonderful opportunity."
Dowden said the number of children who were left out of the gift program may be far more than the 330 originally estimated. Some 1,500 children attend Head Start centers throughout Hampton Roads. She said her organization is accepting toy donations at its headquarters at 2600 Eltham Ave. in Norfolk.
Meanwhile, several Hampton Roads businesses and dozens of individuals stepped forward after reading about the children's plight in Wednesday's Virginian-Pilot and offered to provide toys and other help.
Joseph Takach, CEO of the Meridian Group, a marketing and communications firm in Virginia Beach, said his company had been looking for a holiday service project.
"When I read about this in the paper this morning, I decided this is what it's going to be." He said his company will collect toys for Head Start at its headquarters at 575 Lynnhaven Pkwy. through Dec. 15.
Robert Lakeman, who runs Lakeman Construction in Chesapeake, also took action. He launched a "Christmas is for Kids" fund at SunTrust Bank in Chesapeake and took out a newspaper ad to solicit donations.
"These kids can't go without presents," Lakeman said.
The Urban Assault Motorcycle and Automobile Club in Norfolk offered its services, too. "We want to put them on our project list. What can we do to help?" asked Chrystina Harris, the club's public relations officer.
Even those with needs of their own came forward. In a phone call to The Pilot, Annmarie Ronquillo, a Virginia Beach mother of eight, offered to give up her family's place on the Joy Fund distribution list in order to help a Head Start family.
"I'm not saying we couldn't use it," said Ronquillo, whose husband is in the Army Reserve and stationed at Fort Story. "With such a large family, things are tight. But if someone could use it more, I'd rather let them have it."
Jeff Sheler, (757) 222-5563, jeff.sheler@pilotonline.com
Delicious
Digg
Reddit
Facebook
Twitter
Google
Yahoo
new leadership"
i hope that pilot looks into how much of the cdi head start staff is from
the old staff. cdi usually only stays in a community a brief while before
leaving.
would like to know if any of the new leadership were involved in the bonus issue.
sadly the thousands head start gave out in unacceptable bonuses last year
could have helped a lot of kids, even with a christmas toy.
i hope noone involved wit that issue is still in manadement at head start
in a decision making capacity.
also, a suggestion. a coordinated, regional toy drive of all groups could
help all children receive a toy rather than some receiving none and other
families getting multiple from many diiferrent programs as is the case
now
Christmas is for Kids
As the father of three children, I can appreciate the feeling that Christmas is not supposed to be about toys. I want my kids to learn about the spirit of Christmas and how we should celebrate giving unto others less fortunate than ourselves.
I met with Ms. Dowden at CDI Headstart yesterday, and she told me that the children, ages 3, 4 and 5 love "books, trucks and baby dolls". But she also said they need basic things that many take for granted, such as underwear and socks.
Many groups have come forward to help, both big and small. I have received many offers of help with "Christmas is for Kids" because there are still children beyond the 330 the Salvation Army is helping that will go without.
Blessings,
boblakeman@gmail.com
Christmas Spirit
It is nice to know that the Christmas spirit is alive and well in Hampton Roads. However, the management company that dropped the ball on meeting the Salvation Army's deadline should forfeit a portion of their fee and donate it to the Salvation Army to support the project. They should not be paid for something they clearly failed to do.
Hmmmm
Only if you can prove that it is within the vision, mission or core charter of CDI HeadStart to participate in anything resembling a toy drive or anything of the typical, commercialized Christmas variety!
So your suggestion is moot. A company cannot "drop the ball" on a policy that techinically does not exist. It was/is an annual tradition, which CDI is not currently focusing on.
Streamlined efficiency is what they are all concentrating on.
Management of funding, food, employees, equipment, children and facilities is and shall continue to be CDI's main focus.
However, for the sake of tradition, I'm glad it worked out. I knew it somehow would.
Just a theory
There is a proposition that Christmas should be changed to February 29th. And then only when it falls on a Sunday!
This is all so made up
First, Jesus did not get toys for Christmas.
He got gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Second, the three wise men did not get there till after his birth - he didn't receive gifts on his birthday.
Third, there's a great deal of debate about exactly when he was born, spring, summer or fall, but it wasn't in winter on Dec 25th.
Christians moved it to coincide with pagan yule and solstice festivals.
Fourth, has the holiday REALLY degraded to the point where if a kid does not get some plastic thing made in China that Christmas has not happened for them?
Seriously?
People go into debt for months for this stuff and a good portion of it doesn't even last till Easter.
Even donated gifts were bought by someone - the give me get me buy me is out of hand.
What a jerk of a comment
You must not have a child to be incapable of understanding the excitement that a child enjoys at Christmas, so what if it is made in China or where ever......the innocence and joy on a child's face to get a surprise, albeit unrelated to the birth of Christ....so what, Christmas for adults are for the birth, Christmas for a child are the gifts.....when you grow up and become a the GRINCH, that's fine......this is for the kids, not you!
Christmas
These are kids who are taught about Christmas & Jesus emphatically speaks about not leaving children out for anything. When you close your heart to a child, that is what touches him the most. Even the wise men bought gifts to Jesus when he was young. Did you get toys as a child for Christmas & when did you learn about Jesus? Everyone including the workers and the children of Headstart and their families who went through the turmoil since STOP released them deserve great blessings this Christmas, Merry Christmas and Community, Thank You for blessing these Kids. Also, I hope CDI remember the employees & teachers who stepped up to do a great task & hardship set before them when released from STOP nothing of their fault.
YEAH!!!
It is really great that those who can are stepping up and doing something. I am all for kids having toys, but my concern is that we are teaching them that they did not have Christmas unless it involved a toy. Christmas is about the birth of Christ and that He came to be the salvation of the world. I just get sad when I think that someone can't have Christmas without it coming with a toy. Now, before I get beat up and called names, I don't have a problem with children opening up gifts at Christmas, I just beleive and it is my belief, that the story of Christmas should be first and foremost. Now blow me out of the water folks!!!!!!
Terrry your post was totally awesome.
"It is really great that those who can are stepping up and doing something. I am all for kids having toys, but my concern is that we are teaching them that they did not have Christmas unless it involved a toy. Christmas is about the birth of Christ and that He came to be the salvation of the world. "
Terry, your post was awesome ! If only some of these do gooders could understand including the guy who on here that is urging others to contact him through his gmail account to give toys !