Angel Tree brightens holidays for children

Last year, Angel Tree — a ministry that makes sure children of prisoners have Christmas gifts — made sure thousands of children were able to  enjoy a happy holiday season.
  
Expanding efforts to reach more children this holiday season, Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree is in need of more lead churches and coordinators, according to Candie Maxie, Prison Fellowship Angel Tree coordinator.
   
Last year, Angel Tree provided Christmas presents and shared the gospel of Christ with 7,521 children and their families. The expected number of children for the 2000 holiday season is approximately 8,300.
   
According to Maxie, all counties still need churches to lead in this ministry. She said Cullman, St. Clair, Etowah, Cherokee, Marshall, Jackson, Lamar, Fayette, Tallapoosa, Morgan, Choctaw, Marengo, Wilcox, Monroe and Conecuh counties still do not have a coordinator or a lead church.
   
She added that Etowah county is by far the largest uncovered area with 250-300 children whose parents are incarcerated.
   
Maxie said many children throughout Alabama would have no gifts at Christmas except for the efforts of Angel Tree churches and volunteers.
   
In addition to this holiday ministry, many churches plan events throughout the year to reach out to these children and their families.
   
“Angel Tree is not about gift giving, although that is part of it. It is about restoring relationships … in families, in communities, in the church and most of all, to God,” Maxie said.
   
“This is a wonderful evangelistic tool for churches to use to reach these children and caregiver families with the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
   
Participation in Angel Tree is not limited by church size. Churches of any size can participate by taking the number of angels their program is equipped to handle. Prison Fellowship provides participating churches with videos, books, bulletin inserts and posters to coordinate and promote the Angel Tree. Prison Fellowship also provides age-appropriate tracts for the churches and volunteers to use in sharing Christ with children. The church is responsible for providing and distributing the gifts. Church coordinators contact the child’s caregiver to get the child’s Christmas wish list.
   
Many churches that have participated in Angel Tree find it very rewarding and minister to the children throughout the year. Barbara Lewis, Angel Tree coordinator for Greater Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church, has worked for the past year with the 52 children her church sponsored last Christmas.
   
Lewis describes Angel Tree as the biggest project of the church. This year the church and volunteers have organized a back-to-school event, provided homework help and tutors for the children and planned an Easter program.
   
“We try to impress upon volunteers that we don’t want to lose our children. This is why we are involved in this ministry,” Lewis said.
   
Some churches use the distribution of the gifts as an opportunity to invite families to a church-sponsored activity.
   
First Baptist Church, Dora, sponsored more than 30 children during the Christmas holiday season in 1999.
   
They provided each child with at least one “need gift” such as clothes and one “want gift” such as toys or games according to Chad Blevins, associate pastor of First Baptist Church, Dora.
   
The church invited all the children and their families to a Christmas party to distribute the gifts they had gathered.
   
“We shared in Christmas goodies, sang songs, read the Christmas story, and most importantly, had an opportunity to share the gospel of Christ with the children and their families. Each family was very receptive and thankful,” Blevins said.
   
First Baptist, Dora, conducted the Angel Tree as their annual student ministries Christmas missions project. The youth promoted the angels, and the church family participated by adopting the angels.
   
“We were so happy to be able to minister through the Angel Tree and we encourage all churches who can to participate,” he said.