Sometimes, many people forget what the true meaning of the holiday season. However, the Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America, or FCCLA, reminds the campus every year of the true meaning of giving. The organization sponsors the Angel Tree project, which collects gifts for needy children in the Judson Community.

“We have been doing this for 20 years,” sponsor Mrs. Carrie Hill said. Along with Mrs. Jennifer Kowalik and Mrs. Casey Quiroz, the organization makes sure that over 80 angels have a very merry Christmas.

The process is simple. Counselors from five Judson elementary schools are asked to see what families may need assistance in creating a special holiday. The counselors ask for the student’s age, clothes and shoe sizes, and what special thing they want for Christmas. The counselors then give the list to FCCLA, and the group facilitates the process.

“There were 89 angels this year,” Hill said. “Every child got a minimum of four gifts.”

The group sets up a tree in the front office with each of the student’s profiles. Teachers, parents, and campus organizations can then pick which child they want to sponsor and buy gifts for. Then, they give those gifts to FCCLA, who then deliver the gifts to the elementary schools.

“It’s the best feeling in the world [to give],” Hill said. “All the work is worth it.”

The Starlights Dance Team and the IB Program each sponsored four children, respectively. Not only did the FCCLA program facilitate the process, the students also created blankets for the angels.

“Some kids do not get a good holiday season,” Hill said. “It felt good to help with their struggles.”

During the process, Hill unfortunately missed five kids that needed gifts. That morning, Hill sent out an email to all the Judson employees. Within one class period, all five kids were taken and gifts were bought for them the next day.

“I want the staff and students to know how very special they are,” Hill said. “I was very overwhelmed.”

The FCCLA does not expect anything in return, and is grateful for the support they received. However, they did receive something that is priceless.

“After dropping off the gifts, I received an email from a parent,” Hill said. “She was so grateful for what we did that it brought her to tears. It brought me to tears.”