The Kids’ Big Give

WAITSBURG - "That's not for you, honey, that's for us to give to other kids."

Those words, spoken by a mom to her young daughter, were the whole point behind The Kids' Big Give -- an event that culmi­nated Saturday afternoon at Waitsburg Elementary School where dozens of families gathered to pre­pare Thanksgiving boxes for those in need. Twenty families - a total of 89 people - were blessed by efforts of their own com­munity through The Kids' Big Give. And those were the recipients. The givers received a blessing of their own.

Organizer Jamie Glea­son, a mother of four, was initially inspired to help one struggling family that tugged at her heartstrings. She brainstormed ideas with her friend Angela Jones, and the two finally landed on the idea of The Kids' Big Give. Both moth­ers wanted to serve in a way that would allow their chil­dren to participate while teaching them the joy of giving in a practical way. Their goal was to provide a Thanksgiving dinner for two families.

"I finally just decided to set up a Facebook page and we would just see what comes," said Gleason. "At that point I was commit­ted."

The ministry took a life of its own and quickly grew larger than expected. People called or messaged with names of families in need, donated food items and helped with logistics. "I couldn't believe how people pulled together, of­fering the use of freezers to store turkeys or whatever else we needed to make this happen," said Gleason. "It got a little crazy."

Crazy or not, Saturday's event was well-organized and ran incredibly smooth­ly, according to partici­pants. A box for each re­cipient family was set on a table next to a correspond­ing "shopping list" of food items based on family size. Children were paired to­gether or worked with their parents to fill their box with the items necessary for a traditional Thanksgiving meal. Food items were gathered from several long tables on which the donated food had been neatly ar­ranged by type.

Once the boxes were complete, children wrote notes on a card for the re­cipients. One conversation overheard between two young boys as they wrote their notes made clear the fact that the lesson of giving had indeed hit home. "How will they know who it's from?" asked one young man.

"It doesn't matter," re­plied his friend.

Donors gave freely and generously to support the effort. A local dentist sup­plied toys, Listerine, tooth­brushes, toothpaste and floss. A group of ladies from Gleason's church - Life Church in Walla Walla - worked together to pre­pare dessert trays for each box. "I wouldn't list names because I don't think any­one wants the recognition," said Gleason.

"I can't believe how many people we were able to help," said Gleason. "I can't wait for Christmas to do it again!" Gleason and Jones hope to sponsor three families for Christmas. But if response is anything like the Thanksgiving Give, there is no telling how many will be touched.

Families, individuals or businesses interested in be­ing a part of the Christmas Give can find information by visiting "The Kid's Big Give 2013" page on Face­book or calling Gleason at 386-1565.