By Jaimie Julia Winters
More Kearny families are facing hardship this holiday season than ever before, but the Kearny Giving Tree is helping ensure they still enjoy a merry Christmas—thanks to the generosity of residents, organizations, and businesses.
For decades, the Kearny Giving Tree has matched Kearny families in need with local gift givers. The Kearny-Belleville Elks #1050 stepped in during the pandemic to streamline the process to serve 280 families that year and have helped ever since. Now residents can either shop on Amazon and have the gifts delivered to a volunteer’s house, or shop themselves and drop off at the lodge. The schools, through Jill Taylor and the PTA, submit a list of families who are financially strapped to the Elks. A small group of volunteers calls each family to find out the number of children, their ages, their likes, and their sizes (this year they will also get pajamas).
“Some are experiencing a medical emergency, others lost their job, some are grandparents taking in their grandchildren on fixed incomes. And there have been quite a few house fires over the years where the families were left with nothing,” Melanie Pasquarelli, Exalted Ruler of the Kearny-Belleville Elks #1050, said. “Those calls can be hard. You hear their stories, and there are times you almost break down. Sometimes you have to take a minute.”
Last year, the Kearny Giving Tree made wishes come true for over 250 local children and teens with toys, gift cards, and toiletries. Pasquarelli said that number has definitely increased this year.
Because the organization is local, volunteers often recognize some of the families they are helping. Pasquarelli recalled seeing a friend on the list who was facing a medical emergency, and noted that Taylor’s family had also been helped by the Giving Tree in years past.
Residents were invited to shop for items from the Amazon wish list in November, while others dropped off gifts at the Kearny-Belleville Elks #1050 on Dec. 13, with Santa on hand to help spread holiday cheer. On Thursday and Friday, volunteers will return to the lodge to sort and pack each family’s items into large plastic bags.
The Giving Tree is truly a town-wide effort. Businesses such as the Donegal Saloon collect gifts, Gina’s Hair Salon gathers gift cards, and Fire Headquarters serves as a drop-off location. Veolia Water donates cards, and Lee’s Florist creates personalized bags for the children. A Polish couple shops and donates for 20 children, while one woman hand-knits hats and scarves. The Portuguese Riders, the PBA, the high school, and the fire department all collect gifts or volunteer their time. Mayor Carol Jean Doyle has supported the Giving Tree as a volunteer for 30 years.
The bags will be delivered to the families on Saturday, Dec. 20.
“We don’t wrap the gifts. We leave that up to the parents. That way, they get to see what they are giving the kids, and they play a part in it. It makes it more personal,” Pasquarelli said.
By the end of the week, you would have to be a Scrooge not to be in the Christmas spirit, Pasquarelli said.
“The generosity is truly overwhelming,” she said. “Who would think that a big black garbage bag could bring so much joy to not only the families but us [the volunteers] as well.”