By Ainsley Bock, Staff Writer
At Sierra 2, a community center north of the Curtis Park neighborhood, a bright and cheery Christmas tree stands covered with decorations. But this tree is unlike hundreds of others filling living room corners at this time of the year. Instead of classic ornaments, slips of paper with children’s holiday wishes hang upon Sierra 2’s tree.
It’s an annual tradition. The Salvation Army’s “Angel Tree” event strives to deliver presents for underprivileged children. Every year, families of the Sierra 2 community — Curtis Park and Oak Park residents — gather presents between November 10th and December 14th to donate.
Donators take an “ornament” (a slip of paper) from the Christmas tree. Each ornament details the name, gender, and Christmas wishes of a child. Gifts are returned to Sierra 2, where they’re wrapped with holiday-themed paper by volunteers. Then, the presents are transported to Cal Expo, where they’re distributed to thousands of families and children.
“This program strives to make someone happy during the holidays and give back to families in need,” said Stacy Gray, who manages the Angel Tree event at Sierra 2. In 2020 alone, over 52,000 gifts were donated, just within Sacramento.
“Every child deserves to experience the joy of Christmas morning. These programs are a very rewarding experience,” Gray explained. “It left me in such great spirits knowing that I was able to make someone’s holidays bright.”
Although the Angel Tree event has wrapped up this year, people who are interested in other holiday volunteer work can volunteer with the Sacramento Food Bank and Family Services to distribute food to hungry families.