The True Meaning of The Holidays in Santa Rosa

With the holidays approaching fast it’s important to put things into perspective for yourself as well as for your preschooler. A low cost preschooler activity in Santa Rosa is simply “giving back.” Help your preschooler understand the true meaning of holiday gift giving by sharing with them all of the opportunities available to spread some holiday cheer with others who may be less fortunate.

Opportunities to Give Back

A wonderful opportunity for preschoolers to contribute is by picking out a new, unwrapped toy for the Toys for Kids program sponsored by Fire Fighters in Santa Rosa. Unlike Toys for Tots the Toys for Kids program makes sure all donations stay within the community. Take your preschooler to a store such as Target or WalMart and give them a dollar limit for choosing the toy. Donations can be dropped off at the Santa Rosa Plaza Shopping Center from Noon-8pm, December 7th-22nd. Or, you can visit any Santa Rosa or Rincon Valley Fire Station from Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve.

Another great idea is to donate toys that your preschooler no longer enjoys to the Goodwill Industries, Sutter VNA & Hospice Foundation, or the Salvation Army. This can be tough for preschool age children – parting with toys, even the ones they no longer play with is a difficult concept. Just explain to them that there are children who don’t get any presents at Christmas and wouldn’t it be nice for all children to get a present. Even if they just choose only one toy, be sure to praise them for sharing. See end of article for locations.

A simple way to give back is to donate to a food drive. The Redwood Empire Food Bank places green food barrels at Lucky’s(Albertsons), G&G Markets, Longs Drugs and Safeway stores. The next time you go grocery shopping let your preschooler help you find one of his/her favorite foods that would be appropriate to donate and put it into the barrel.

An opportunity that presents itself often is the Salvation Army Bell Ringers. Be sure to carry around spare change this December and let your preschooler drop a few coins in during your Christmas shopping outings. Describe to them what the charity does with the money so he/she will know where the money goes.

And last but not least, we can’t forget our furry friends during the holidays! The Sonoma County Animal Shelter has a wish list on their website (see below) asking for everything from peanut butter to blankets to plastic bags. Check out the list then see if you and your preschooler can find anything around the house that the shelter may need. There is also a donation coin drop near the Santa Photo Area in the Santa Rosa Plaza Shopping Center downtown. Just look for the doggy and kitty statue in the plexi-glass box.

A Priceless Gift

So, start a discussion with your preschooler about the meaning of community, sharing, caring and “giving back” and look for the above donation opportunities and more in Santa Rosa and Sonoma County.


Toys for Kids
http://www.srff.org/cs/cs.html

Goodwill Industries of the Redwood Empire
680 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa
707-570-2392

Sutter VNA & Hospice Foundation Thrift Stores
510 Lewis Road, Santa Rosa
707-528-9310

Salvation Army Thrift Store
2770 Santa Rosa Avenue, Santa Rosa
707-575-7320

Redwood Empire Food Bank
http://www.refb.org/fooddrive.html

Sonoma County Animal Shelter
Wish List for Animals
1247 Century Court
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
http://www.theanimalshelter.org/helping.htm