Season of Service: Four Opportunities to Give at UIW

Christmas is a time of happiness, togetherness and cheer, but for many, the holiday season isn’t joyous or magical. Throughout the San Antonio area, needy and underserved children and families often go without basic necessities, much less holiday’s special tokens, treats and gifts. However, caring people are hard at work to help make their Christmases a bit brighter.

Right here at UIW, dedicated organizations offer several opportunities to embrace the spirit of the season and bring light and hope to local children and families. Remember: Every small contribution can make a big impact. Here’s how you can contribute:

Make the Holidays Happier for a Needy Child with Angel Tree

Once again, University Mission and Ministry has trimmed an Angel Tree in the foyer in front of Our Lady’s Chapel. You won’t see shiny holiday ornaments on this tree. In their place, Angel Trees are decorated with Angel Tags, or special tags featuring the Christmas wish or need of a child and/or a family with children. Mission and Ministry invites members of our UIW community to take a tag from the tree and purchase the item requested, then bring the item in a holiday bag with the original Angel Tag to the organization’s office in AD 147.

Items will be accepted through Friday, December 15, 2017. Distribution of the items will take place December 18 through 20. For more information, please contact Brenda Dimas or (210) 829-3128.

Bring Joy to Displaced Children with Project Santa Mom

The holidays can be hard for children separated from their parents and loved ones. The School of Professional Studies (SPS) Criminal Justice Society has organized a special toy drive with them in mind. Now, through late December, the organization is collecting toys for children whose mothers are incarcerated and who are living in homeless shelters.  Members of the Criminal Justice Society, with the support of volunteers, will wrap and deliver the gifts to the Bexar County Detention Center and homeless shelters for distribution.
Non-violent, unopened toys for children ages 3 through 13 can be donated through Friday, December 22 and dropped off in the designated boxes on main campus, or at the School of Professional Studies Northwest Center, located at 9729 Data Point Drive, Room 135. For more information, please contact Claudia Moreno or Tamara Thompson

Provide Comfort to Critically Ill Children though the Pull-Tab Collection Campaign for the Ronald McDonald House

Join the Christian Pharmacists Fellowship International as they work to make days brighter for critically ill children and their families at the Ronald McDonald House. Simply pop the tabs from the top of your soda cans and drop them off in the designated bins or at reception in the Feik School of Pharmacy. Soda tabs are made from higher quality aluminum than the rest of the beverage can, and can be more easily recycled. The funds generated from the recycling campaign will contribute to the cost of day-to-day operations at the Ronald McDonald House, which becomes a second home for families of children undergoing medical treatment and care.

This campaign continues through the holiday season into the spring. Pop tabs will be accepted through Saturday, June 2, 2018. Participants are asked to drop off their tabs at the front desk of the Feik School of Pharmacy. For more information about the organization, visit CPFI.org.

Make Christmas Morning more Cheerful with Toys for Tots

The UIW Lions Club offers yet another way to bring Christmas cheer to underserved children. The club is hosting a campus-wide toy drive for the Toys for Tots organization. Toys for Tots, a program created by the U.S. Marine Corps, gathers new, unused and unwrapped toys to needy children in our local community.

Donations will be accepted from Monday, November 27 through Thursday, December 14 in designation donation stations in select buildings on main campus, including the Student Engagement Center, Mabee Library, Administration Building, Gorman Business and Education Center and more. For more information, contact the UIW Lions Club.