Friends of SoZo Kids Inc. is seeking donors to sponsor about 150 children living in poverty in the Ocala National Forest in its fourth-annual Angel Tree drive.
For the first time, sign-ups will be done online. Links to the Angel Tree lists can be found at www.FriendsOfSoZoKids.com.
“Christmas is going to be especially challenging for the kids in the Forest this year because of COVID-19,” said Pastor David Houck, founder of the Help Agency of the Forest Inc., a nonprofit also known as SoZo Kids.
Friends of SoZo Kids Inc., formerly the SoZo Kids Club of The Villages, is using the online program SignUpGenius to post wish lists for children attending the two SoZo Kids after-school programs at Forest Lakes Park and Sandy Acres, plus their siblings and, in a few cases, a parent or grandparent. The group also is collecting generic gifts for teenagers, a group often ignored at the holidays.
Teenager gifts include fishing gear, sports items, AXE products for boys, body sprays for girls, arts-and-craft kits, makeup, hair and nail supplies, and video game certificates.
“We hope each child will get new clothing, sneakers, toiletries and at least one toy or fun item,” said LaRae Donnellan, president of Friends of SoZo Kids Inc. “One girl is even asking for a new walk-in chicken coop – seriously.”
Donations of unwrapped gifts may be dropped off between 10 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21, or Saturday, Dec. 5, at Compass Storage, 4477 E. County Road 466, Oxford. More information is available by writing to Contact@FriendsOfSoZoKids.com.
