Share Advent With Your Community

Advent is a special time of year. December can rush on by, but it’s important that we take time with our families to breathe, slow down, and remember that we’re celebrating the birth of the Messiah. Consider spending your Advent season in service to others! You can share the love of God with your community in simple, easy ways. DonateDonate to a local food pantry, nonprofit, or toy drive. For children, it can be especially fun and meaningful to go shopping for toys, and then gift the toys to children who otherwise might not have received gifts! Send a shoebox through Operation Christmas Child or give toys to a local initiative. Often, fire stations and hospitals will collect toys around Christmas time. You can also try a homeless shelter, halfway house, pregnancy clinic, or your local Boys & Girls Club.Get TheatricalFor children and families with a flair for the dramatic, putting on a show can be a great way to spread the joy of Advent! Go Christmas caroling at a nursing home or hospital, or perform a play at a homeless shelter. You could even contact your community center or Boys & Girls Club and ask if you can volunteer to teach simple, fun, drama classes to the children.Break Bread TogetherOne of the simplest ways to share the meaning of Christmas with others is to make extra food. Consider inviting a college student who’s far from home, an elderly widow or widower, a friend who is in treatment for medical issues, a military family, or anyone else who seems lonely into your home for a meal. If there’s still food left over, take the rest to your local soup kitchen.Surprise GiftsKeep Christmas goodies — cards, candy, or stockings filled with small toys — in your car. Whenever you see someone who looks like they could use a little extra joy (such as a stressed-out mom, a homeless person, or a Salvation Army bell ringer who’s standing in the cold), give them a gift and a smile! Soldier Care PackagesMake Christmas cards or care packages to send to soldiers overseas. It’s always difficult for our troops to leave their families for a potentially dangerous environment, but it’s even harder for soldiers to be away during the Christmas season. Help your children draw some pictures or save up their money to send a care package! Operation Gratitude is a great place to start, and if you’re not sure what to have your child write in a letter, try these tips.St. Cloud private schools proclaim the Gospel message within an academic environment of excellence that challenges students to be creative and critical thinkers. To learn more about what makes us different, contact us at 407-246-4800.