A very Merry Christmas came to the Kinship Care children Thursday evening of December 17 in an unconventional way. The Kinship Care Center provides assistance to grandparents and other family raising children in parent absent homes. Usually, people give presents to the children, but not so this time! The children actually got to shop for gifts for others.

The idea was the brainchild of Tom Mertl, former President of the Rotary Club of Lake Spivey/Clayton County. He noticed the children were receiving gifts but did not have the opportunity of experiencing the joy of giving. He started the “Giving Side of Christmas” and the event has been a huge success and has been bringing joy for 13 years. It is an effective concept that simulates both the buying and the giving experience.

This year the event was held at the Frank Bailey Senior Center in Riverdale. As the children arrived they completed a Christmas list of people they would like to give gifts to at Christmas. For each perosn on their list, the children are given a “Rotary Buck,” which represents money for making the purchase. The Rotary buck has the picture of our current President, Troy Hodges. Each child then is assigned a personal shopper assistant who takes her or him to the “Christmas Store.” Each item in the store costs one Rotary buck. The adult volunteer shopper assistants, usually a Rotarian, helps the child shoppers make their selections and when complete they take their purchases to one of the wrapping stations. A Rotary Club or Kinship Care volunteer wraps the presents, puts the name tags on them, and puts all the purchases in a shopping bag.

The children leave with Christmas to give. They are able to enjoy the complete Christmas experience. After they shop, they get to see Santa Claus.

Kinship Care is a county program primarily made up of grandparents raising grandchildren. The grandparents are also given a much deserved fellowship time while their children are taken care of by the Rotary Club and Kinship Care volunteers. The merchandise and monetary contributions are donated by the Rotary Club of Lake Spivey/Clayton County.

“We believe that this program has the opportunity to teach a few life lessons. One of them is that the true joy of Christmas is the giving side,” says Rotarian Tom Mertl.