The Annual Neighborhood Christmas Store is such an exciting time on the Parker Street Ministries campus! Thanks to the generosity of this amazing community, families from two low-income neighborhoods were blessed!
In case you didn’t know, Parker Street Ministries’ holiday festivities run a little differently. The hope is to love neighbors extravagantly and to affirm the dignity of parents who select and purchase new toys for their children at a steep discount. To those ends, a fully functioning neighborhood store is provided. The community donates brand new toys and funds to purchase toys. A similar concept works out through a separate Kids’ Corner where children and teenagers come shop for their parents and loved ones at even steeper discounts.
Parents, kids, family members, volunteers, and donors all participated in The Gift of Giving!
Here’s a look at numbers for the 2023 Christmas Store:
- More than $34,700 (retail value) in new toys were sold at 75% off their cost
- 24 businesses, churches, organizations, and countless individuals donated toys and wrapping paper supplies
- 87 families purchased 1,993 gifts for 230 kids over the course of three days at Christmas Store
- 151 children and teenagers purchased an additional 751 gifts for their family members at Kids’ Corner (all items were $1 or less!)
- 385 volunteers filled various activity slots, totaling 953 volunteer hours throughout Christmas Store
- After Kids’ Corner, excess toys and gifts were donated to local nonprofits to round out their holiday ministries.
Staff and Board rejoice knowing neighborhood families enjoyed the ability to provide for their loved ones and were pointed to The Father who gave Jesus, the embodiment of every good and perfect gift.
THANK YOU!
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Parker Street Ministries (PSM) is a 501c3 in Lakeland, Florida, that follows a Gospel-centered model characterized by living, listening, affirming dignity, and building community together in and through the Parker Street neighborhood. Parker Street Ministries is committed to Gospel-centered community development through the focus areas of: Fostering Spiritual Growth so Christ and His Gospel are front and center, Supporting Lifetime Learners through educational opportunities, Stabilizing the Neighborhood by addressing the quality and availability of housing, and Cultivating Connections so gaps in relationships and services are bridged.