With Christmas just around the corner and with many of us thinking about what gifts we want and what gifts we have to buy, it is important to keep a perspective of our roles and luxuries in the world. And nothing puts our materialistic minds more so into perspective than the Christmas wishes of kids who don’t have as much as us.
Things of My Very Own is a not-for-profit organization in New York that provides crisis intervention services for children who may have been abused and/or neglected.
Their founder, Rayn Bonnie, decided to put some of those wishes on her Facebook.
The messages, which were printed on a Christmas tree card, show the age of the child, what they wish for, and what they actually need.
One of the very first wishes that Rayn posted on her Facebook was that of one child who wrote: ‘I want school snacks so I’m not the only one eating during snack time at school.’
A five-year-old boy wished for anything that was related to Batman but in reality, he really needed a winter coat.
An 11-year-old girl wrote: ‘this Christmas I want warm blankets and a coat. I have a single bed. I like the color blue, I wear size 16 and I am a nice person.’
Rayn says that since her Facebook post, people from as far away as Italy and Switzerland have contacted her organization.
In an interview, she said: ‘that post seems to have moved a lot of people.’ Rayn went on to say that every year her organization helps approximately five to seven thousand children in the New York Region.
Things of My Very Own is based in Schenectady, New York and they also work with Child Protective Services to help give children items that are necessary for sustainability.
Some of their ‘Transitional Assistance Packages’ include clothing, bedding, hygiene products, emergency food, medical supplies and school supplies.
