The spirit of Christmas shone at Galilee on Sunday, December 5, thanks to angels who donated approximately $10,000 worth of toys and games for area children. Our church lobby was filled with cheer as we read the one instruction for this bounty of gifts: “For Loudoun children in need.”

It was a sight to see and demonstrated conclusively that there are Angels Among Us this holiday!

Words can’t describe how thankful we are for our anonymous angels.

As you can expect, getting  something like a thousand toys into the hands of children represents a logistical problem. That’s why there’s a Santa Claus, after all, who spends a whole year preparing for his solo Dec 25 delivery. Galilee wasn’t about to go it alone, and we don’t know any elves, so instead we partnered with two of our Backpack Buddies schools to distribute the toys to families who could use a little angel help.

Coordinating with Countryside Elementary school staff, Galilee opened our doors on Monday, December 6 to approximately 125 families. Galilee staff and volunteers were treated to many smiles and expressions of delight as the kids “shopped” for their favorite toys. It was joyous.

Then on Friday, December 10, Galilee volunteers packed up toys for delivery to Meadowland Elementary. Meadowland staff held an event on Saturday, December 11 to distribute those toys, as well as winter clothing and family break food bags, to even more families. The clothes came from separate donors and the food bags from our own Backpack Buddies pantry.