Community Service Programs brings holiday cheer to families, soldiers
More than 500 stockings filled with school supplies, games and various toys have been collected for Carolina Cares’ annual Stocking Stuffers drive, and there is still a chance to contribute before the holiday season.
Carolina Cares is a subdivision of Carolina Service Council and has been around for almost 50 years, according to Gina Tierney, director of the organization and second-year nursing student.
The Stocking Stuffers drive, pairing up with Columbia’s chapter of the Salvation Army, will benefit the low-income children of the Midlands.
“You just take a stocking, fill it up with five or six gifts for a kid and return it back to us,” Tierney said.
The drive will conclude Friday, Nov. 30, and after the stockings are collected, they will be distributed on the South Carolina Fairgrounds about a week before Christmas.
“Children and their families will have a chance to come pick up some gifts,” Tierney said. “Every year we try to increase our numbers.”
For 2011, Carolina Cares was able to collect about 600 stockings for the Salvation Army, and are hoping to collect more for this holiday season.
Stockings can be picked up in the Campus Life Center located in the Russell House, Suite 227. The age categories range from infancy to 12 years old.
“You don’t even need to go out and buy gifts for the children, said Sadie Molinet, graduate assistant of the USC Community Service Programs. “We will even accept a cash donation.”
Carolina Cares also hosted a Thanksgiving dinner for underprivileged families at the Columbia Nurturing Center and collecting cards through their annual Holiday Mail for Heroes drive.
“I assigned different campus organizations to different families to cook food,” Tierney said. “We served about 30 people on Thanksgiving.”
Over 1,600 letters have been collected for Holiday Mail for Heroes so far, according to Tierney. Campus organizations are welcome to pick up a pack of up to 200 cards for members to fill out and then return to Community Service Programs. The letters will be sent to the American Red Cross Association, then to military hospitals and troops overseas.
“It’s a lot easier to fill out a card than a stocking, which is why we are expecting a much higher turnout for this drive,” Tierney said.
Specific organizations that have contributed to the events include the American Marketing Association, Delta Zeta sorority, Omega Phi Alpha Sorority, Capstone Scholars and Carolina Judicial Council.
“Whether it’s signing letters for heroes or adopting a family, every little bit helps,” Tierney said.