Christmas Charities

Being a single mother doesn't necessarily qualify you for Christmas help. All of the places that I know of require people to fill out an application and want to know your income. Most of these places also have an age cut off limit of 12 years.

Number 1, the kids Dad should be giving them each a gift, plus there should be two sets of grandparents and some aunts and uncles. Most places that provide help for Christmas have already passed the deadline for taking applications.

Number 2, Speak to the pastor of your church. Sometimes they will take a special offering for a needy member of their congregation. However, they won't keep doing it for the same family over and over.

Number 3, plan ahead, start shopping in January. There have been several times over the years that I would have needed Christmas help, if I hadn't planned ahead. I start shopping in January and have been done for more than a month, and have everything wrapped and under the tree.

Number 4, no kid needs more than one gift each from their parents and they definitely don't need what they see on TV and they don't need designer labels. The name of the game is plan ahead.