Hello, friends,
Recently, my daughter and I were leaving a Saturday morning art class at Art Always in Florence when we happened upon the HollyDaze Bazaar at Florence Congregational Church. Oh, how I love a good church bazaar!
Outside, there were 4-H kids showing off their livestock and inside, a truly beautiful community effort — rows and rows of handmade felt ornaments adorned with sequins and whipstitched trim; homemade baked goods, crocheted baby booties, colorful wreaths.
But best of all was the “Children Only” shopping area: We rang a bell and a friendly teenager emerged from behind a snowman-patterned curtain and shepherded my 6-year-old Violet inside. When they emerged fifteen minutes later, my daughter looked so proud — triumphant, really — I started to cry.
She had discovered the pure joy of giving, and the pride came from being able to do it by herself. The grand total — perhaps coincidence, perhaps not — was 75 cents, the exact amount she’d earned and managed to save, and it was enough to buy a string of beads for Granny, crayons for her little brother and other gifts yet to be revealed. Everything was wrapped in the secret kids wonderland, too.
In addition to cornbread (50 cents) and enough homemade Moroccan stew to feed my family lunch ($3), the kind souls at the Florence Congregational Church gave my daughter a taste of independence. I felt so honored to be able to take part is such a thoughtful community event.
I am also feeling most grateful to have lucked into the heartwarming story written by author Bruce Clayton, about Christmas, 1949. He reached out to me recently about writing for the paper and in the course of that conversation, decribed one of the most meaningful gifts he ever received. “Though we didn’t have a lot of money — and my working-class family could hardly be called bookish — my father bought three Walter Farley novels for me (that year),” he shared, marveling. His beautiful and terribly funny essay starts on page 12.
In recognition of both blessings, I’d like to pay the experience forward by donating to The Sydney F. Smith Toy Fund, which was established by the Gazette in 1933 to help families in need during the Depression. Today, it distributes vouchers for local retailers to eligible families so that parents can have that same magical experience of picking out something that will bring joy to their kids. If you can donate, please visit
toyfund.gazettenet.com or stop by our office in Northampton. No amount is too small — as both stories demonstrate, it doesn’t take much to make something memorable to a child.
Yours,
Katy
klukens@gazettenet.com