2018 Holiday Drive Wrap-Up

The holidays may take on a different feeling for a family who is living in a shelter or is on a limited income. The same can be true for an older adult who doesn't have a strong connection to their family. For many of our clients and residents, without our holiday drives, this season can be challenging or lonely. 

But this year's response to our holiday drives was incredible! Our incredibly generous partners helped collect, wrap, and organize gifts that were distributed to 2,100 children and individuals, helping to normalize life for many who may by struggling. Here are some highlights:

  • 1,200 children received gifts this year. Most of our children, especially those living in our shelters, received two to three gifts each! 
  • More than 900 older adults and veterans received gifts, including all 92 seniors at our East 12th Street residence, who enjoyed new, plush bathrobes. Thank you to McGraw Hill Education for organizing the bathrobe drive and providing gifts for more than half of our residents at East 12th Street.
"Wow, I got slippers and they fit me. I really needed them. Thanks! - Richard, one of our older adults

Thank you to all of our standout partners!

SMANYC volunteers with "The Grinch"
  • Prologis answered "Dear Santa" letters by purchasing special gifts for children living at our domestic violence shelter in Queens and provided a holiday meal for families. They also raised more than $10,000 between their two offices to donate to VOA-GNY programs.
  • SMANYC threw a How the Grinch Stole Christmas-themed party at our family shelter in the Bronx complete with games, crafts, and dinner. They also went above and beyond by wrapping all of the gifts that the children received that same day.
  • One of our most dedicated partners, The Weeks Lerman Group, hosted a holiday dinner at our veterans residence in Manhattan and provided gift bags that included snacks and gift cards for every vet. They also adopted "Dear Santa" letters and provided a gift bag for every parent and child at one of our domestic violence shelters. 
  • Marubeni Corporation and Bank of East Asia collected toys and made financial contributions to VOA-GNY.
  • Our friends at New York Life filled 800 stockings with snacks and small toys for the children in our family shelters.
  • American Century Investments adopted "Dear Santa" letters from students at our Bronx Early Learning Center, a preschool for children with developmental delays, many of whom also live below the poverty line. American Century Investments also generously collected monetary donations at their office holiday party and donated the proceeds to the school. 
  • We'd also like to recognize IHS Markit for sending multiple teams of volunteers to our Toy Sort Week as well as the Girl Scouts of the USA who not only came to lend a physical hand but set up a toy drop-off point at Girl Scout Central in Midtown. 

We want to emphasize our immense gratitude to all who made contributions to our three holiday drives. Without your support, we would not be able to bring holiday cheer to those we serve!