GREENVILLE, Indiana — A Southern Indiana organization, dedicated to helping community members in need, is now asking for help from the community.
Mary Gallinger's organization, Angels in Arms, runs a Christmas donation program every year. People across the area send her names of kids who may go without presents, and she organizes other families to sponsor the children with gifts.
"We go out in the community, and we tell their story and we get help for them so we're pretty much the vessels," she said. "We need to look around because that's how we get our names, we don't take applications."
This year, Gallinger said there are nearly 500 kids on the list, but she's still in need of presents for more than 150 of them.
She is asking the community to help by bringing additional gifts or monetary donations to The Crossing Christian Church in Greenville, Indiana by their deadline of Saturday, Dec. 9. That's because they plan to distribute the gifts the following weekend.
Pastor Bobby Sorrells said Gallinger came to him for help with another event earlier this year, and mentioned her "small" Christmas drive.
Sorrells agreed to help out as a hub to collect gifts, which filled his church during one collection day in early December.
"Every Sunday we make a statement of faith and it is to share the love, share the word and share the Lord, and connect the community through Christ," he said.
Gallinger said the long list of children she has is indicative of tough economic times and the growing need in her more rural community. She wants people in the community to know that even a small donation can make a big difference.
"Whether its $1, $20 or a whole child's gift that you do, it makes a difference in their life," she said.
If you'd like to donate, you can deliver gifts to the Crossing Christian Church on US 150 in Greenville through Saturday. You can also make a monetary donation online through the church's website. Just make sure to note that it's for the Angels in Arms Christmas drive.
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