You Can Help Make the Holiday Season Brighter for Children in Need
Holiday Gift Drive
November 2 to December 22
It is hard to imagine a child living through the holiday season without receiving a gift or without the gift of a loving family. You can make wishes come true for the children in our care – some who are living through this holiday season without the warmth of a family to call their own. There are thousands of holiday wish lists that Children’s Home + Aid staff and volunteers are trying to fill for children in need throughout Illinois.
For the third year, Paul Konerko and Jim Thome, together with their wives Jennifer and Andrea, and the Chicago White Sox organization are joining with Children's Home + Aid to reach out to the public to ask for holiday gift donations to help fill these holiday wish lists.
By simply filling one request, you will make a wish come true for a child in Foster Care, Residential Treatment, Early Childhood Care + Education, Intact Family Services or Youth Services. These children are experiencing overwhelming obstacles such as mental illness, homelessness, abuse and neglect. They have seen the ravages of poverty and drugs, and many suffer the painful loneliness caused by separation from their families. These obstacles are especially difficult during the holiday season, as many of our families do not have the resources to provide their children with a holiday celebration. These gifts filled through the wish lists may be the only gifts they will open this holiday season.
Each year, we try to make the holiday season a little brighter by providing every child in our care with two new gifts that are specially chosen just for them. We also treat the children to an annual holiday roller-skating party that includes games, prizes, and treats.
If you would like to participate in the Holiday Gift Drive, November 2 to December 22, you can help in the following ways:
- Request a child’s “wish list”
- Donate unwrapped gifts that will be matched to a child’s wish list
- Donate store holiday gift cards
- Make a tax-deductible donation to help cover the cost of a holiday party for foster children
Donate Now
Request a Child's Wish List
Contact Sara Norwick, volunteer coordinator, at 312-455-5222 or
Snorwick@childrenshomeandaid.org to request a wish list.
Chicago Metropolitan Drop-Off Locations
Gifts and donations can be dropped off between November 2 and December 22 during regular business hours at the following Chicago Metropolitan locations:
- Children's Home + Aid, 100 N. Western Ave., 2nd Floor, Chicago
- U.S. Cellular Field, Gate 4, 333 W. 35th St., Chicago
- Kaplan Tutoring, 1459 W. Webster Ave, Chicago, IL (Dec. 1 - Dec. 15)
- Children's Home + Aid's Rice Child + Family Center, 1101 Washington St., Evanston
- Kaplan Tutoring, 1249 S. Naper Blvd., Naperville, IL (Dec. 1 - Dec. 15)
Children's Home + Aid Regional Locations
For people living near a Children's Home + Aid regional office, please contact the following individuals for gift and drop-off information:
- Mid-Central Region, Bloomington:
Harry Johnson at 309-824-5246 or Katie Allen at 309-532-0248 or 309-532-0622
- Northern Region, Rockford:
Judith Loudin at 815-720-2106
- Southern Region, Granite City:
Emily Gates at 618-452-8900, ext. 119