Baskets of Hope – Serving Children in Need
A Program of
Vacaville City Firefighters Charity Fund, Inc.
P.O. Box 2425 Vacaville, CA 95696
A brightly colored basket, wrapped in cellophane and tied with ribbon, and filled with goodies – eggs, a stuffed animal, candy, and toys. It brings happiness and makes a child smile. It’s a simple thing, really.
But many children in our community may not be able to experience that joy, through no fault of their own. There are families, many of them single parent, struggling to make ends meet, put food on the table, to just provide the basics.
Everyone thinks of children in need at Christmas. There are toy drives, toy runs, Christmas Wish programs, and any number of other programs to help children in need during the holidays. But for many families in our community there might not be Easter baskets for their children, were it not for a program called Baskets of Hope.
Can you imagine the heartbreak of a child waking up on Easter morning and not having an Easter basket waiting for them? Can you imagine the anguish that the child’s mother or father must feel, knowing that even a simple thing like an Easter basket is beyond their means?
Baskets of Hope, which started in 2002, is a grassroots, all volunteer effort to supply Easter baskets to those children. By securing donations of baskets, toys, candy, grass and children’s books, as well as cash donations to purchase those items when needed, the project has been able to provide anywhere from 350 to over 1000 Easter baskets to children between the ages of 2 and 10 every year since its inception.
All donations are used to make the baskets, which are put together by volunteers, and then distributed to local agencies. It only takes about $5 to make one basket – a small price to pay for a child to experience the joy of receiving an Easter basket. $50 will make one dozen baskets, and $100 will make 25 baskets.
Every basket made includes a stuffed animal to love, and a children’s book – because organizers firmly believe that if a child can read, they will better understand the world around them.
Donations or supplies to make the baskets can be dropped off at Bounty Books, 877 Merchant Street in Vacaville. Donations of new stuffed animals, toys, books, candy, baskets, or any items suitable for a child aged 2 to 10 years old are appreciated.
Baskets of Hope is a program of the Vacaville City Firefighters Charity Fund, a 501c3 charitable organization with a Federal Tax ID # of 45-5144035. All donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. For further information, call 451-4770 or 451-4459, or send an email to basketsofhopevv@cs.com.
Respectfully
Shauna Manina, Founder
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