The Holidays are Here!

It’s that time of the season again when the sounds and smells of the holidays fill the air.

Families make arrangements to get together and enjoy food, cheer and togetherness and store windows are filled with trinkets, toys and gifts in every size, color and price range. You simply can’t wait for the holidays to be here.

But there are those among us who dread the upcoming holiday season. Not because they don’t look forward to participating in the holiday cheer, but because finding tomorrow’s dinner is a challenge, let alone worrying about how to provide a festive holiday meal for the whole family. Purchasing shoes and clothing for their children means paying the rent and utilities late, but hoping that the landlord will be understanding so they have a place to sit down and help their children do homework. Hoping that money will come from somewhere so that there will be gifts beneath the tree when the children wake on Christmas morning, or hoping to think of a reason that is good enough to soothe a young child who wonders why Santa didn’t visit.

There are those among us who have hit rock bottom not because they aren’t honest and hardworking people, but because they are playing the hand that life dealt them, doing the best that they can to survive one day at a time.

Let’s take the time out this holiday season to remember those less fortunate. Light of A Thousand Stars will be participating in a few initiatives to insure we are doing our part to remember those that society may have forgotten. Be sure to do your part this Holiday season, spread the Love!

Here’s how L.O.T.S is providing a helping hand to the community this Holiday Season:

• September 30th 2019 Revitalizing a Community Garden with “GrowNYC”

• Oct 20th 2019 Breast Cancer Awareness Walk

• Oct 23rd 2019 Fundraiser for Susan B Komen (Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation)

• Nov 17th 2019 Volunteering with “Hashtag Lunch Bag” to feed the homeless

• Nov 26th 2019 Read Aloud with PS.140 promoting literacy

• Collecting donations for the victims of Hurricane Dorian

• Collecting Clothing and shoes of Sheltering Arms Teen Homeless Shelter

• Collecting and distributing Coats and other Warm Items for the NYC Homeless population

• Distributing Thanksgiving Baskets to those in need

• Movember Charity Participation

• Collecting and Distributing Toys for the Holidays to those in need

2018 Recap

2018 was a whirlwind of a year, and Light of a Thousand Stars has helped our community more than ever. Following is a list of just some of the initiatives we have worked on throughout the year.

Since its inception in 2015, Light of a Thousand Stars has been seeking to brighten the lives of women and children facing hardships in our local communities. We provide resources that promote self-esteem, develop professional skills and emphasizes core values. We believe everyone gets a chance to shine!

This year, we have continued our partnership with PS140 where we have provided help in many areas that were needed such as:

• Bookbags filled with school supplies for over 100 families in need

• Breakfast for Dads taking their children to school. This was a day promoting and advocating for Dad involvement

• A trip to the U.N. and to Young Chefs Cooking Academy for over 100 students

• Christmas presents for over 60 families

• Pumpkins and a meal for over 200 families during the Thanksgiving season

• A graduation party for the graduating seniors

• A Read Aloud event where volunteers visited the school to read books to each class

We have once again teamed up with the Arms of Love Community Outreach. This year we provided additional backpacks and school supplies for their local community day. We also volunteered our time serving meals and handing out additional toys to over 100 families during the Holiday season.

We volunteered our time in the God’s Love We Deliver kitchen. It was a hard day of chopping, stirring and prepping but that day alone we were able to prepare meals for over 900 people with life threatening illnesses.

We donated to and/or volunteered with many charities, including Live out Loud, Good+ Foundation, Movember, and Susan B. Komen (Breast Cancer Awareness).

We were able to contribute close to $8,000 to Friends of Karen. We also had over 25 people participate in the annual race. This organization serves children who are terminally ill by providing resources for their families. They help with monthly bills, transportations, food etc. to ease the burden of the parents.

We have volunteered our time serving dinners at United Nations Church International for their annual “Haircuts and Harvest Day” where they gave free haircuts and food to the local community.

In addition, throughout the year we have collected and donated food, clothing, books, and other supplies to local charities, organizations, families, and shelters including (but not limited to):

• Providing 10 families with Thanksgiving Turkeys and meals

• Providing a displaced family of 6 with food, clothing, and baby essentials

• Providing a local day care with a meal and over 200 sets of hats and gloves during this cold holiday season

• Providing Christmas gifts to over 75 families in need in Los Angeles

I’d say we had a pretty successful year! Looking forward to all the great work we are planning in 2019. We are going to get bigger and better and reach more of our community in need.