In the days leading up to Christmas, three Prison Fellowship interns hit the road and traveled down to Tampa in our SUV-style sleigh to help churches distribute Angel Tree gifts to children on behalf of their incarcerated parents. You can read how our journey began here and then check out our adventures in Florida. And here’s how we wrapped up the trip:
We spent the Friday before Christmas at the mall — not shopping, but distributing gift cards to Angel Tree families that hadn’t been sponsored by a local church this Christmas.
The reason we came to Florida in the first place was because there are more Angel Tree children in the Tampa area than the local participating churches and organizations are able to serve. Prison Fellowship is hoping to change this trend in future years by raising awareness of the Angel Tree program and the needs of prisoners’ children in Florida.
The three of us met Roland from Prison Fellowship at the Brandon mall and followed his lead as we gave the caregivers gift cards and talked and prayed with them. The reactions of the families were all very different. If there is one thing I have learned about Angel Tree during this trip it is that there is no typical Angel Tree family. Everyone comes from different situations, and the relationship between the caregiver and child, as well as the relationship between the prisoner and his or her family, varies. Some caregivers were surprised because they didn’t know much at all about Angel Tree or hadn’t had contact with the prisoner for a long period of time. Other caregivers were extremely grateful and in tears at the thought of Angel Tree caring about their situations.
Roland is an incredible example of using a short amount of time to connect with the caregivers and the children. We learned a lot from him as he followed the Lord’s direction in every new situation with each different family. One caregiver asked, “Who can I thank?” My mind was racing and I froze. Roland wordlessly pointed to the sky.
After our day at the mall, we were able to get some local food, which means we ate tacos out of a bus and loved every second of it. Then we drove to Jacksonville for a few hours of sleep before the Potter’s House party.
When I started planning this sleigh ride during my internship last summer, the first thing the Prison Fellowship staff in Florida said was, “You have to go to Potter’s House,” and I’m so glad we did. It was incredible.
Potter’s House is a church that’s very dedicated to ministry outreach. It serves many, many kids and the church is very involved in prison ministry. They have a huge team of volunteers, and they throw one awesome Angel Tree party.
As the Angel Tree families walked in, they were greeted by a group of volunteers. Then one of these volunteers would run the families’ bag of gifts to a table where the family was seated with another volunteer. The children got some snacks and picked an additional toy from a huge row of tables, as well as a Christmas gift for their caregiver. Potter’s House went all out for their Angel Tree party; they even had a group of high-school boys helping families carry the gift bags out.
The individual commitment of each volunteer was nothing short of inspiring. Teenagers played with the smaller children and talked to the older kids so they didn’t feel out of place. The adult volunteers ministered to the caregivers; they did a lot of listening and praying. The caregivers talked to them about the party, their incarcerated loved ones, and situations they were facing. One family’s caregiver had recently passed away, and due to some confusion, gifts had not been provided for the children. A volunteer ran out and shopped during the party and brought back gifts for the children so they could have their specific Christmas wishes. Over and over again I saw Potter’s House going above and beyond out of love for these children.
This picture does more than I ever could to describe the children’s reactions. It was evident they felt so special. We interviewed a few kids and asked them, “Who are these gifts from?” They proudly told us that the gifts were from their parents. Angel Tree succeeded in bringing dignity to these incarcerated parents who otherwise could not provide Christmas gifts for their children. Whether it was these kids’ first or fifth Christmas receiving Angel Tree gifts, I could see the shame they felt for having an incarcerated parent fade away and the joy of Christmas take its place. I’ll forever be grateful for the opportunity to see Christ working through his followers to bless families affected by crime and incarceration.
About Angel Tree Sleigh Ride: Three volunteer college interns – Sophie Nagle, Janell Daniels, and Brittney Julian – traveled 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. See their journey on Twitter at @prisonfellowshp, and look for the hashtag #ATSleighRide.