Christmas in the City

It was a traditional, joyous Christmas at the Kennedy home in a suburban Boston community. The table was set with traditional holiday fare and the fragrance of fresh baked cookies and cakes dropped off by family and friends mixed with the aroma of lovingly prepared food. The Kennedy children’s stockings were stuffed and hung heavily from the fireplace mantel. The tree, glistening with decorations and tinsel was surrounded by gifts and toys for the children from grandparents, aunts and uncles and the Kennedy’s large extended family. Toys and gifts spilled out across the living room rug. More toys than the children could possible play with, more gifts than they could use…many of which would end up in a closet or in the back of the garage.

The house was filled with joy. Yet Jake and Sparky Kennedy felt something was missing…how to engage their children not simply with the joy of receiving gifts but with the Spirit of Christmas…kindness, good will, sharing with others. And, as Jake succinctly put it, “Showing the kids that it wasn’t just all about them”.

The next year the Kennedys expanded their Christmas tradition. With friends, co-workers, and clients of Kennedy Brothers Physical Therapy volunteering their time and donating gifts and money, Christmas in the City was born. That first year 165 mothers and children from Boston Homeless Shelters were guests at a party at Boston City Hall, with festive decorations, games, a holiday meal and a gift for each child that the child had asked Santa to deliver.

In the two decades since Christmas in the City has expanded its scope. In 2010 the spectacular party hosted over 3000 children and parents from homeless shelters from Boston and surrounding communities. A banquet, live entertainment, a Winter Wonderland with games, rides, a petting zoo, kid friendly activities from the Museum of Science and the Children’s Museum, a day in a stress free, safe environment made up the activities and each child received a personalized gift from Santa which the child had wished for.

In addition, CITC distributed toys and gifts to almost 2000 families who could not be accommodated at the event.

Christmas in the City is now engaged in activities throughout the year. A Thanksgiving food distribution for families in need; an Adopt-a-Family program to assist families transitioning from a shelter to their own home; assisting homeless families providing support to help finding employment, financial aid and legal advise, daycare and other help to get back on their feet.

But Christmas in the City has never lost sight of its core value, the spirit of the season–kindness, good will and caring for our neighbors.

And we do it with no paid staff, no paid executive director, no paid fund raising or development team. Christmas in the City works as a 100% volunteer organization where members of the community, from all backgrounds and walks of life, donate their time, donate money and gifts and do what they can to help their neighbors have “The Best Day of the Year”.

Christmas in the City Volunteers, who include the Kennedy children, do everything. They solicit donations of toys and money, set tables, decorate the party site, drive trucks, load and unload those trucks, wait tables, in-put data, answer phones, distribute toys, clean up and sweep the floor when the party is over.