The Surprising Items Missing From Help 4 The Holidays This Week

Ok, Amarillo, I'm not one to blow smoke, so I'm just going to lay it out there. We're behind. Help 4 The Holidays started off so strong, but now, we've found ourselves behind the pace of previous years.

I'm not here to make you feel bad or tell a sob story; honestly, it's the furthest thing from that. We know times are tight, and this year in particular has been rough. However, that means even more people are in need in our community, and there's a good chance they're worse off than we are.

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How Much Is Still Needed

To say a lot would be an understatement. We HAVE seen some donations come in, and to those generous individuals, thank you. I've got your flowers incoming. A good chunk of what has come in are toiletries, and that's great. We still need way more, though, believe it or not. They're also the cheapest thing you can find, especially if you hit the dollar store.

Outside of that, we are lacking severely in everything. Toys, which are usually something we see early, are nearly nonexistent. Arts & crafts stuff is thin, aside from one thing that I'll get to shortly. Winter gear, such as jackets, hats, and gloves, is TRULY nonexistent. Bedding, blankets, eyeglasses, clothes, office supplies...the list goes on and on. All of these things are in dire need of showing up. Diapers are still a major need, although we DID get a solid donation of those and are up to eight boxes.

Thank You To...

Rose came through with a bevy of diapers as we called out for them, so we can't thank you enough. Hilltop Senior Citizens Center showed up with one of the largest boxes of colored pencils I've seen in my entire life, and they even donated a bit more on top of that.

There was another woman, whose name escapes me at the moment, who had two giant bags of those little Squishmallow stuffed toys who was getting ready to start listing them individually on Facebook Marketplace. Then she turned on the radio and heard our pleas. She showed up and donated all of them to kids in need instead.

Friday Is CRUCIAL

With the weekend fast approaching, we are running out of time. I don't want to sound desperate, but to be honest, I kind of am. We need you in the worst way. I've said it many times this week, but you are the engine, we are just the vessel. We CANNOT do this with YOU. The list...it's right here. Please take a look at it, identify a couple of things you can grab, and bring it by.

We aren't asking you to bring $200 worth of stuff or anything like that, just a couple of items. If we can get 100 people to bring just TWO items apiece, that's 200 items we can send out to those in need. So please, come see us tomorrow, Saturday, or Sunday. We're in Wolflin Square at the old Vexus building, 2221 I-40 Frontage Rd.