Four years ago, Janice Walker's daughter was going through a seemingly perfect pregnancy, and Walker was expecting her grandson to arrive in January - a New Year's baby.

But in January 2008, for no explainable reason, Liam was delivered stillborn, she said.

Walker, a Charlotte resident, thinks back to the day she saw Liam, moments after he was born: "He never got to have Christmas," she said.

So the Walker family decided to share the gifts of the holiday with other area children in need. This year, as they do every year in memory of Liam, the Walkers donated to the Empty Stocking Fund.

The fund helps nearly 14,000 children in the area through the Salvation Army's Christmas Bureau. So far, 7,000 families have signed up to receive help from the volunteer-based program that provides gifts to low-income families.

"I've always given to the Empty Stocking Fund," Walker said. "(Liam) never had Christmases, so we thought maybe we could provide Christmas for another child."

The Walkers have since been blessed with twin granddaughters and want to continue giving during the holidays, she said.

Of the donations given to the Empty Stocking Fund this year, about 100 were given in honor of someone who died.

Charlotte resident Anne Antanaitis, said she donated to the fund in memory of her sister, Susan Metzelaar, who died in July at age 59.

When Antanaitis discovered her sister had cancer that had spread to her liver, she and her husband, Benjamin Antanaitis, decided to become her primary caregivers.

For six months, Antanaitis made sure her sister was present at chemotherapy sessions and even performed paracentesis at home, a procedure to remove fluid build-up in the abdominal cavity. "She could hardly walk," Antanaitis said.

Rather than remembering medical procedures and doctor's appointments that consumed the latter part of Metzelaar's life, Antanaitis fondly recalls her sister's generosity.

Antanaitis said her sister was a godmother and had nieces, and "she just loved to shower those kids with gifts. She had a good heart."

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Metzelaar also enjoyed her job as an optician at Charlotte Ophthalmology Clinic, Antanaitis said. "She loved her position, and she loved serving patients." After her chemotherapy treatments, Metzelaar would visit the staff and often received get-well cards from her patients.

The sisters grew up with their parents teaching them the importance of giving back to help others in need, which is why Antanaitis continues to contribute to the Empty Stocking Fund, she said.

"People should think a little bit more about others, rather that what they want for themselves," Antanaitis said. "We have so many homeless people in Charlotte, and the world shouldn't be like that."