The sleigh has been going full speed ahead to Tampa; the last day has been pretty exhilarating. We got our rental car at the Amtrak station when we arrived in Atlanta. The employee was wearing a very chipper bow tie, so I was pretty confident we were off to a great start. He, like almost everyone we talk to, was a little confused about what we are doing. But I really like when people ask questions; explaining Angel Tree never gets old.
We made a quick stop for breakfast and then drove straight to Tampa. It was a long ride. There was lots of singing and we had fun watching the temperature climb as we drove. The Florida welcome center was a gem. They have free orange juice and grapefruit juice, which I’m still raving about. It was all quite welcoming. We finally got to Tampa, and after the attempted sleep on the train and a long drive, we fell into bed in about a minute.
In the morning we made contact with Roland. He is in charge of the Angel Tree area we are in, and we wanted to help him any way we could. Roland told us he had found out about an Angel Tree party in Orlando last minute and asked if we could go. We were thrilled to have another event to attend! He also said he was busy calling caregivers about Angel Tree gifts for the children, so we volunteered to help. Our trip suddenly became chaotic, but we were so happy we had the chance to go to the Orlando party and give Roland a hand.
We made a quick stop at our hotel to get our camera equipment and to print out the caregivers’ phone numbers. The two-hour drive to Orlando was a mess of shuffling spreadsheets, making calls, finding a library to print out some forms we had forgotten, eating gas station hot dogs, and watching dozens of Disney signs fly by. We pulled up at 6:59 p.m., threw on the elf hats, and went to find the party coordinator, Patricia.
People like Patricia are why Angel Tree is able to touch so many families so deeply. She is passionate about prison ministry and just radiates compassion. She hugged us and introduced us to half of the church within a few minutes.
The church put on a Christmas service and then has a reception. The service was amazing; we were singing and praising, kids sang, another group danced, and we heard spoken word and rap. After the service, the children got their Angel Tree gifts. I know the phrase “their faces just lit up” gets thrown around a lot, but that really does describe it. They walked bashfully up the aisle to receive their gift, but when they touched that beautifully wrapped package their faces showed exactly what they were thinking and feeling. Gifts are an important part of our social construct, not because of the item itself, but because it communicates love from the giver to receiver, which was so obvious when watching these kids receive them on behalf of their incarcerated parents.
The whole ride back to our hotel, we couldn’t stop talking about how genuinely welcomed we felt. There was amazing fellowship after the service, lots of food, and kids running around everywhere. The people were so kind, to us and to one other. There is nowhere else I would have rather been than at that party witnessing such a strong love within the body of Christ. My fellow pilots echo my feelings of gratitude for the chance to witness these Angel Tree moments, and we look forward to an equally full day tomorrow. Next stop, Jacksonville!
About Angel Tree Sleigh Ride: Three volunteer college interns – Sophie Nagle, Janell Daniels, and Brittney Julian – are traveling down to Tampa in an Angel Tree “Sleigh” to visit Angel Tree churches, personally thank our volunteers, and share in the joy of Angel Tree Christmas with the children and families of prisoners. Follow them on Twitter at @prisonfellowshp, and look for the hashtag #ATSleighRide.