Angel Trees bring season cheer! Kyle Lorenzino of Visiting Angels, Client Services and Community Liason visits Emily Hoar, owner of The Rivah.
Call it a Christmas win/win. If last year’s Angel Trees at the Rivah did anything for owner Emily Hoar, it was to prove two things: that there are many people in the region needing help during the holidays and just as many eager to provide it.
Just after Thanksgiving last year, Hoar and her staff placed Angel Trees around her Kilmarnock boutique.
Each Christmas tree was decorated with paper angels bearing the age and gender of the recipient on the front and a list of needs and wants on the back.
The names were provided by nursing homes, home care agency Visiting Angels, local schools and Kilmarnock United Methodist Church. Using social media to get the word out, she let the community know that they could help by selecting an angel and shopping for the items on it. “Some people would take an angel and shop for the person and then call back and ask for another angel to help,” Hoar says with pride.
Finally, she placed a jar on the store’s counter for those who wanted to help but didn’t have time to shop for a wish list. The Rivah matched all funds donated to the jar, resulting in a kitty of close to $1,200. Using that money, Hoar and some friends took the wish lists from all the remaining angels on the tree and went shopping for everything on them.
“For the seniors, their wish lists are really just basic needs: soap, slippers, socks, gloves, snacks and warm clothing,” she explains. “I tell people not to worry about shopping for strangers because these adults and children are very appreciative for any gifts they receive.” In an effort to teach their children the true meaning of Christmas, one local family chose an angel for another entire family. “They ended up buying seven large leaf bags of clothes, underwear and toys for the family.”
This year, the Angel Tree will have even more angels to choose from and they’ll set it up before Thanksgiving to give people more time to shop. Even better, once angels are chosen from the tree, replacement angels will go up, providing additional opportunities for people to help. When unsure about size or taste, she suggests gift cards from Walmart, Food Lion or Subway as a means of letting gift recipients choose for themselves.
“Especially for seniors with no family around, for the most part this is their only Christmas,” Hoar says. “That’s what makes it so fulfilling and heartwarming.”
The Rivah · 49 S. Main Street, Kilmarnock, Virginia · Visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/shoptherivah or call 804-577-4291 for more information.