Members of Joliet Catholic Academy’s student council recently participated in the Catholic Charities, Diocese of Joliet‘s annual Adopt-a-Family Christmas Drive. Students encouraged the JCA community to donate in order to provide shirts, pants, underwear, socks, coats, pajamas, and toys for 35 Joliet area children between the ages of three and five.
Ericka Williams, Manager of Family and Child Support Services for Catholic Charities (Early Head Start and Head Start), spoke to JCA’s Student Council Members about the impact they can have on these families. She is a 1986 graduate of St. Francis Academy (Joliet Catholic High School and St. Francis merged to form JCA in 1990). Erika is responsible for overseeing the social services component areas on a daily basis which includes managing the center’s transportation, child care, father engagement, and family engagement. She feels that it is the responsibility of all Early Childhood Educators to nurture, motivate and educate parents in understanding the impact of their positive parenting in their children’s lives.
Many times families in the Joliet community may not be homeless, but are “houseless”, jumping from one residence to another without a permanent residence. Some families do not have access to clean water within their homes, so Catholic Charities provides water. The Christmas season is a great time to reflect on Jesus’ message in Acts 20:35, “it is more blessed to give than to receive.”
It’s not too late to sponsor an individual or family through Catholic Charities’ “Gift of Christmas 2019” program. To sponsor an individual or family this Christmas, simply choose the family and donate by visiting https://catholiccharitiesjoliet.org/general-donation/. Or, if you’d prefer to call Catholic Charities with your donation, call Claudia at 815-724-1140. If you have any questions, please email msnow@cc-doj.org
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