Thousands of hospitalized children and orphans across the country will receive plush bear, dog and reindeer animals this holiday season as part of a LifeWay Christian Stores community outreach.
Customers who visit participating stores can purchase these plush animals for $5 each to be donated to a local charity. Each store’s manager coordinates with a local charity, hospital or relief group to distribute the donated animals to the children they assist.
Sherry Parnell, a former Southaven, Miss., LifeWay Christian Store manager started this initiative after her grandson spent the first seven months of his life in the hospital and missed several major holidays. The idea came to her as she was at home decorating in 2007.
“As I was putting up the tree, I said a prayer to the Lord thanking Him that we would not have to spend Christmas in the hospital that year,” said Parnell. “Then, God spoke to me and said, ‘You won’t, but there are a lot of kids, parents and grandparents who will be there.’”
The next day, Parnell shared the idea with her staff and the plush animal campaign began. Southaven LifeWay Christian Store customers bought plush dolls to donate to the Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital. In 2010, 17 LifeWay Christian Stores participated by selecting local charities and collecting plush animals for the children.
This year 102 stores are facilitating customer donations of plush animals to more than 90 charities in 26 states.
In Texas alone, 19 stores are working with more than a dozen organizations, such as the Children’s Medical Center in Dallas, the Northeast Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, the Texas Baptist Children’s Hospital in Round Rock and the Eveline Rivers Christmas Project in Amarillo, just to name a few.
Store contact information is located online at LifeWay.com.
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