As many of our long-time friends and clients know, under Larry Tarabicos’ leadership and Colleen Aungst’s implementation, our firm has “adopted” families in Delaware for the last three years with the goal of providing just a bit of holiday cheer to those in our community who need it most. Some years there are more infants to shop for, some years more adult children, but every time the result is the same – we end up wrapping hundreds of gifts for many deserving families.
This year, we decided to adopt as many families as we have staff members – sixteen! Our families were located in the City of Wilmington, Wilmington suburbs, New Castle, Newark, and Middletown. Our families were recommended from a variety of sources, including Councilman Penrose Hollins, Hilltop Community Center, Boys and Girls Club, and Special Olympics Delaware.
On December 16th, on their personal time, nearly every member of the firm delivered dozens of bags and boxes filled with Christmas gifts that ranged from this year’s most popular toy, Fingerling Monkeys, to winter clothing to family board games to basic home essentials and everything in between! To name a few, we were able to give back to a family who experienced devastation from a house fire, families heavily involved in the S.U.N. (Safe United Neighborhoods) program helping to bring peace to the communities in the inner city of Wilmington, a family with an athlete that will be representing Delaware in the Special Olympics National Games this summer, and families who still volunteer at their local community centers even though they are in great personal need as well.
We are extremely lucky and thankful to be able to serve our community all year, but especially during the holiday season. There are too many Delawareans who, despite years of hard work, find themselves in very difficult and unfortunate circumstances. With that in mind, our goal this year, and every year, is to bring a little bit of holiday cheer to those most in need of it.
We wish all of our friends a very Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and a safe, healthy New Year!
See photos from this year’s Adopt-a-Family efforts below:
