Beth’s dad liked to drink. Sometimes he’d drink too much and end up behind bars. He wasn’t always there when Beth needed him.
But he did something special for her while in prison—he signed up for Angel Tree.
Every year, thousands of kids receive gifts from their incarcerated parents with the help of Angel Tree.
“Those presents meant so much to me,” Beth remembers. “I used to think he didn’t love me enough to stop drinking and stay out of prison and be there for us. It made me so happy to get something from my dad under the tree.”
Those Angel Tree gifts proved to Beth that her father loved her, even from behind bars. It helped her know that he cared, and that she was very special to him.
Beth was later able to reconcile with her father, who just recently passed away. She found peace where before there had been hurt and anger. And when she was old enough, she began helping other children like her through Angel Tree.
“I would gladly endure all those bad years,” Beth says, “if it meant I could have even one more good day with him now. I know he would be proud of me for not following in his footsteps and making a better life for myself.”
A parent’s imprisonment punishes their child. A little girl or boy like Beth simply needs a chance to find the truth and follow Jesus Christ. Through His redemptive love they can be healed and restored—to their parent and to a life of faith. That’s what Angel Tree is all about. Reconciling parents with their children and helping both to find true freedom through Jesus.
Hundreds of thousands of children like Beth are without their parents right now, marked by and painfully hurting from their imprisonment. With the help of Angel Tree volunteers across the country, their faces will shine this Christmas when they hear about the love of Jesus and discover they’re loved by the ones they miss so much.
To learn more about Angel Tree, and how you and your church can be a part of transforming lives like Beth’s, visit www.angeltree.org.