The economic downtown caused by the pandemic threatened to ruin the holidays for thousands of Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County members, but thanks to record-breaking support from community sponsors and individual donors, the holiday has been saved! Every Club member will receive at least two holiday gifts and an extra special holiday party held at their Club. The annual Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County gift drive started slowly this year, but due to the generous sponsorship of GL Homes, media coverage and social media shares, the holiday gift campaign surpassed all expectations and records.
“There was real concern that our Club members were going to be disappointed this holiday season with not enough toys and gifts to go around. Thanks to overwhelming community support, our area’s most disadvantaged children will have a happy holiday after all. At the risk of sounding like a cheesy holiday movie, Christmas has been saved thanks to the generosity of our community,” said Eric Roby, marketing, PR and holiday gift drive director for Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County.
Indicative of tumultuous times, donations were smaller this year. However, more people donated and widespread community support more than made up for the shortfall of gifts. Despite challenges, traditional corporate sponsors like The Breakers Palm Beach and Office Depot continued to be the backbone of the holiday gift drive, while newer partners like GL Homes helped meet the goal. U.S. Sugar made a generous donation to the Glades area Clubs. Firefighters all over Palm Beach County belonging to the International Association of Fire Fighters donated a large truck full of gifts. For the first time, Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County was the charity of choice for the Lake Clarke Shores Holiday Boat Parade. New partners like Park View Realty helped to get more than a dozen other Delray Beach businesses involved with the gift drive. Non-profits like Boca West Children’s Foundation, Spirit of Giving and Rocking Horse Foundation also pulled out all of the stops this year to make sure every child has a smile for the holidays.
“We have nothing but gratitude going into 2021. Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County has served the families that need us most through the pandemic because of our strong community partners and the generosity of individual donors. It’s heartwarming to see our community pull together in a time of such great need,” said President and CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Palm Beach County Jaene Miranda.
