The Kearney Family Foundation’s primary operation delivers food, clothing and holiday gifts to families which have been identified by schools and other local organizations to be in need during the holiday season. In 2008 alone, The Kearney Family Foundation assisted over 425 individuals and over 100 families. We would like to share just a small sampling of the many stories from those we have had the privilege of assisting.
My family and I would like to thank you for the gifts and groceries given to us for the Christmas holidays. I am currently unemployed and my husband's construction business is very slow. We were only going to give a few presents from Santa this year and your gifts of clothing and toys for our children and ourselves made Christmas a more joyous occasion. Our 14 year old daughter has currently finished treatment for a brain tumor and most of our money has and is going to her treatment and mortgage. Please keep us in your prayers that all goes well. Thank you again for the gifts of groceries, clothing and toys for the children.
"The Kearney Family Foundation came to the rescue," Mandy said. "Because of this wonderful foundation, my children had Christmas. I was overwhelmed with the love and care that goes into this foundation each year. We would never be able to have the Christmas we have without it, and my children and I are truly grateful."
My husband and I have been involved with the Kearney Family Foundation for the past couple of years. It has actually become an important part of our holiday season. We specifically work in the area of helping pack the food, toiletries, soaps, etc., which is distributed to the families. It is a wonderful feeling knowing these families will have a more enjoyable holiday with the help of the Kearney Family Foundation.
I think that the Kearney Family Foundation is what Christmas is all about! I feel very very good and pleased that I am helping brighten up someone’s day and life. I know that I am always so excited to get the Christmas list, shopping, and searching for things that were requested. After we have all gone and are done shopping, it is time to wrap them. I know that when I help wrap them I get some good practice on my wrapping. My favorite part though has to be delivering them because when my dad and I walk into the place where we drop the stuff off I love seeing all of the giant bags everywhere. I love thinking how many people’s days will be brightened.
Alexa Age 10
It was late in the year when we moved to Missouri, having come from a very warm climate, we were not acclimated to the Missouri winters at all. Spending our first winter here we thought we would freeze to death, we huddled in one upstairs room, blocked off all the other parts of the house and had a kerosene heater going at full capacity just to make it through the winter.
Living in a very remote area, we made it through, but it was decided as a family that we would move closer to a city. We decided on Kearney, it being a bedroom community of Kansas City, it seemed to be a perfect location. Things had not come through that year and our financial situation was bleak. The children were really bummed about Christmas, and as parents we were really dreading it. We had been befriended by several families in the area. It was brought to our attention of a foundation that had been established to help those in need around the Holiday's. I went to the President of the Foundation, Kim Thorne and told her of our situation. That Christmas, because of the foundation, we were blessed to have one of the nicest Christmas' in a long time.
We were so impressed that we decided we would volunteer to make someone else's Christmas as memorable as was ours, "working with the foundation", our eyes were opened to the amount of work and planning it took just to provide for one family, let alone over 100 families each year. Monies and a list of family members with ages and sizes were given to all "shoppers". It was amazing to us that with a budget, we were able to get everything and more than what was on the list. The gifts were purchased, wrapped and delivered to a deserving unknown family...just like our family several years before. Thanks to the love of those working and volunteering for the Kearney Family Foundation, many families are able to have a Holiday that they couldn't provide for themselves. It was and always will be one of the most important lesson in our life that when you give of yourselves freely to others you receive the greatest of blessings.