It’s time for The Morning Call’s annual Be an Angel campaign, now in its 25th year. Find hundreds of ways you can help make the Lehigh Valley a better place to live at .
Back in autumn 1999, when I started the Be an Angel campaign, I never dreamed I’d be kicking off another new season 25 years later.
It was an experiment of sorts — a way for The Morning Call to do something a bit more meaningful than our then-typical annual “news” story reporting the hottest toys of the holiday season. Each year, staff members would receive calls and letters from people in need, usually asking for a donation of gifts they hoped would make their children’s holidays a little happier.
Letters like these tugged on our heartstrings and presented a dilemma: Whom do we help and how? Should we solicit holiday gifts for children? Should we collect food, tents, blankets and cold-weather clothing for the homeless? Or should we provide much-needed items to people who are disabled, ill or dying? This led us to ask: What if we could do all of these?
So, rather than choose just one cause, we decided to approach the problem on a grander scale. The best way to do that, we determined, was to reach out to nonprofit organizations across the Lehigh Valley that serve a host of needs for both people and animals. We asked them to tell us what they needed to help meet the needs of others.
Just as we do now, we started in September by printing notices in the paper asking nonprofits to send lists of three things they needed most. We published their lists in late November and invited our readers to earn their angel wings by fulfilling one or more wishes by the end of January.
That first Be an Angel wish list really opened my eyes to the needs in our community and the problems people are facing every day. I was equally surprised by the number of agencies striving to address those needs. I learned nonprofits do an excellent job helping their constituents, but most operate on shoestring budgets and could use a helping hand.
That first wish list apparently opened the eyes of our readers as well. No one planned to make Be an Angel an annual campaign in the newspaper. But response to that first wish list surprised everyone. Just as eager as nonprofits were to list their needs, our readers were equally eager to find ways to help. I actually received letters from readers thanking me for the wish list, telling me they always wanted to do something for those in need, but they didn’t know how. Be an Angel told them how.
During the first year, angels embraced the campaign. Among items donated were six cars, seven computers, five televisions, three laserjet printers, and a Sony PlayStation and games. Angels also fulfilled wishes for office furniture, free eye exams and glasses, a carpet shampooer and so much more. And some angels signed up to volunteer — including a lawyer, a grant writer, a receptionist and a caterer. It was the beginning of a 25-year successful venture of local people helping their neighbors in need.
Our goal for Be an Angel was to give back to the community by connecting those in need with those who wanted to help them. We hoped The Morning Call would be the perfect tool to help us make that connection.
Much to my delight, it did just that! And I have you, our angel-winged readers, to thank. This campaign would not work without your generous donations of money, goods and time.
To date, the Be an Angel campaign has yielded more than $5.9 million in donations. Last year alone, angels donated more than $256,000 in tangible goods. These figures do not include the value of volunteers who share their time and talent, which many agencies say is the most valuable donation of all.
While the numbers are impressive, what these donations do is even more impressive. I’ll never grow tired of reading donation reports. Angels have brought sunshine into the homes of shut-ins with gift bags filled with personal care products and treats. They’ve funded holiday camp scholarships for at-risk children that keep them off the streets in a safe environment. They’ve provided food and supplies for the homeless, as well as shelter, bedding and food for abandoned animals.
Nonprofits serving children, particularly those facing challenges, usually receive the most donations. Camelot for Children, which provides fun and friendship to children with disabilities and/or medical problems (as well as respite for their caregivers) has had most of its wishes fulfilled since joining Be an Angel back in 1999. In fact, its wishes were filled so quickly that potential angels asked the agency what else it needed.
Boys and Girls Club of Allentown, which serves at-risk, inner-city youth, also has been successful at having its wishes fulfilled. The organization offers programs and activities that focus on education, health and life skills, as well as fun. For the last 25 years, it has requested and received thousands of board games and thousands of dollars in monetary donations to be used toward scholarships for their holiday camp, which keeps children off the streets during holiday school breaks. This year they are asking for board games, gift cards and gaming systems.
Often donation reports are accompanied by stories about the angels making them. I’ve always found the stories of children earning their wings to be especially heartwarming.
One of my favorites was shared years ago by a hardworking father of two who wanted to teach his grade-school-age children the importance of helping those who are less fortunate. First, they went through the tabloid to determine who they wanted to help. They decided on the Children’s Home of Easton, which serves dependent, neglected and traumatized children who, through no fault of their own, are unable to stay in their homes with their families. Together, the father and his children went shopping with his last paycheck of the year to purchase toys and other items needed for children at the home. To ensure his kids would experience the joy of giving, he took them along to the home to deliver the gifts and get a first-hand view of what it might be like to live there. For them, it was a rewarding and eye-opening experience.
Over the years, other parents have shared similar stories, such as those about children celebrating birthdays by requesting items needed for an agency on the wish list. These efforts by the young are uplifting. Their compassion gives me hope for our future.
It’s also encouraging to know that our young people are learning the value of volunteering, giving their time and energy to help others. Over the years, Cops ‘n’ Kids Children’s Literacy Program has had hundreds of young volunteers. Established by retired teacher Beverly Bradley in 2003, the program strives to connect the community and children through literacy. Bradley and her large team of volunteers collect donations of new and gently used children’s books, which they then distribute free to children all over the Valley. Dozens of volunteers, many of whom are children, hold drives to collect the books that are donated. One team processes incoming books and prepares them for distribution at community events and in classrooms. Then, students from local high schools and colleges go to these distribution events to read to younger children.
The program has distributed more than 1.2 million free books to children across the Lehigh Valley, the majority of which were contributed through Be an Angel. What’s most impressive is that it’s all done by volunteers. “Not a single person ‘working’ for this program is paid. They are all here because they want to be here,” said Bradley.
Many important tasks have been accomplished by volunteers at other organizations, as well. Rooms have been painted, driveways have been paved and buildings have been repaired, all through the generosity of angels.
Two years ago, Ed Overtree, our contact at SCORE Lehigh Valley at the Northampton County Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, was actually able to put a value on his organization’s volunteers. The program needed business people to provide free mentoring to new and existing businesses. It “scored” five volunteers, each of whom will contribute $25,000 worth of services each year.
Through the years, angels have fulfilled thousands of wishes. I’d love to be able to tell the community’s problems are solved. But the need is perpetual. Problems such as homelessness, hunger, abuse and disease do not go away. We may not be able to obliterate any of these problems. But each year through your generosity, we’ve at least put a dent in some of the need.
So I’m asking you, once again, to reach into your hearts and pockets to help those in need. We’re providing you with hundreds of ways to do that inside this tabloid.
As you read through the wishes, you’ll see that you don’t have to be wealthy to earn your wings. Some items needed are inexpensive and can be purchased at a dollar store, such as toothbrushes and toothpaste and school and office supplies. Some might be gently used items you already have packed away in your basement, attic or closet but are no longer using.
We’ve made it easy for you to find ways to help by breaking down the list of nonprofits into eight categories: health care, family, youth, schools, animals, seniors, the arts and an “also in need” category that includes libraries and historical societies. Please don’t underestimate their value. All of these organizations play a vital role in our community.
View the Be an Angel wish list at . You can search our database for a specific agency or for a group of agencies in one of the eight categories. You can also search our database for organizations needing items you’d like to donate. For example, if you purchase a new TV and want to donate your old one, type “TV” into the keyword categories. You’ll call up nonprofits that need televisions.
The campaign continues through Jan. 31. We ask that you make donations directly to the organizations and please tell them it’s a Be an Angel donation.
Angels, when I think of all you’ve accomplished with your donations over the last quarter century, I can’t help but get goosebumps. I’m so grateful. My hope is that Be an Angel will continue to have a positive impact on our community for at least 25 more years.
Irene Kraft is a freelance writer and a former Morning Call editor who started the Be an Angel campaign in 1999.
