Most of us see Christmas as a joyous time to spend with family and friends, worship, eat well and exchange gifts, but it’s no secret that Christmas is a stressful time for those who find life challenging. There are families in our community that have a difficult time meeting their kids’ clothing needs; new shoes and warm winter coats often stretch budgets to the breaking point.

Good Shepherd is a major supporter of Christmas Care, a program that helps provide clothing for children in need. Last year Christmas Care helped meet the clothing needs of nearly 400 children. Parents are given the choice of special Burke’s gift cards to shop for baby, children and youth clothing in person or online or to shop at Walmart on prearranged days. Christmas Care hopes to match or exceed last year’s $90.00 per child amount, but it all depends on donations.

How can we help? Good Shepherd is again putting up a Thanksgiving tree in the Narthex during November, and when you make a donation in any amount you can place an ornament on the tree. Make your checks out to Good Shepherd with Christmas Care on the memo line.

God is so good to us, one way we can give thanks is to cover our Thanksgiving tree with ornaments! Christmas Care is administered by the Hinton Center, but all donations are used only for Christmas Care.