Dear Friends and Family,
We are facing the upcoming holidays with both joy and sorrow. Our family has taken on a lot of change since last year. The biggest of those being an addition - Josh has gotten married!!!!!! His lovely wife is Kristen, who we have known and loved for years. She and Christy had been friends since they were in Sunday school together during their college years. So Kristen has entered our crazy family rather easily, she already knew us, so she knew what she was in for. Kristen has suffered great loss over the course of this past year also. She lost her precious mom in July and just last week her best friend Lauren, who joined her Father in her eternal home. So, as I’ve said, we face the upcoming holidays still broken, but ever hopeful.
Which brings me to the reason for this letter – Christy’s stocking. We are, for the second year, hoping to bring love and hope to families who are facing the holidays with children who are sick and hospitalized, while also facing financial difficulties. We did this last year by filling Christy’s stocking to overflow with children’s books and gift cards, which we then delivered to Children’s Hospital. Last year we hoped to be able to deliver gift cards totaling $1000. Imagine our total delight when we were able to hand over more than $3000 worth of gift cards and cash. Oh, how very blessed you helped to make our holiday. We hope that each of you received a copy of a letter from Judi, the Child Life Coordinator at Children’s Hospital. It gave you a small glimpse of how your donations were used. (In case anyone missed it, we have included Judi’s letter.)
This year, with your generosity, we hope to meet and even exceed last year’s donations. We are once again collecting gift cards of all types – WalMart, Kroger, Meijer, restaurant (fast food or sit down), gasoline, etc. One family donated a Build-A-Bear gift card last year, which I thought was an excellent idea. Also, this year to brighten the faces of the little ones we are collecting children’s DVD’s.
We learned last year that we could improve some on our gift notification to the hospital. So, if you would please include with your gift - your name, complete mailing address and the value of your donation so that the hospital can send you a receipt, which you can use for income tax purposes. Please note that your donation conformation letter will be addressed to you from The University of Kentucky.
Donations can be mailed to:
Christy’s Stocking
c/o The Wells Family
104 Millhouse Drive
Nicholasville KY 40356
Please feel free to drop off your donation, or call and one of us will gladly pick it up from you.
We still miss Christy terribly and can hardly stand the thoughts of facing her favorite time of year without her. However, we feel so blessed knowing that her spirit lives on through your gifts to needy families. Thank you for helping us to keep her spirit alive.
Happy Holidays and may God bless each of you,
Chris, Julie & Kyle
Josh & Kristen
Julie, family, and friends,
Thank you all so much for the generous donation of gift cards to our children and families. We created 52 gift packages for children and families who were here Dec. 25. We used some gift cards then. We used some before for families who were discharged a day or two before and had no resources to provide gifts for their children. We again gave some to some children and families last week, because it was dreary and depressing. The smiles the gift cards bring would warm your hearts on the coldest of days.
We shared some of the gift cards with our social worker, who has given them to families needing gas and food. We have a few remaining, which we will give to children who are deserving. I think Christy would be pleased with the help and joy the gift cards have brought to the families at KY Children’s Hospital. Each of you should be please with the good works you have made possible with your generosity.
Thank you again!
Judi Martin CCLS
Child Life Coordinator
Kentucky Children's Hospital
800 Rose Street
Lexington, KY 40536-0293
859-323-6551
jamart8@email.uky.edu
