For a mom and kids living in a hotel, donors provide a glimmer of joy at Christmas

Christmas is billed as a joyous season, but for struggling parents like Devonne Moise, it can be heartbreaking and anxiety-inducing.

Moise and her five kids have been living in an extended-stay hotel since October, when she lost her job and her housing.

Now, she’s logging as many hours as she can at a grocery store, and her older children are pitching in by working as well. But with Christmas coming, the holiday buzz over gifts and celebrations just makes her realize what she can’t provide her family this year.

“It reminds you of just how bad your circumstances are, because we’re not out shopping for trees or wrapping paper or baking cookies or preparing for Santa,” Moise says. “I’m in the laundromat, trying to scrape up quarters to wash all the clothes. I just want to enjoy a day without so much pressure.”

Moise’s kids range in age from 7 to 23. Her two youngest, 11-year-old Deon’tae and 7-year-old Daniel, are two of 6,542 children registered to receive toys and clothes through the Salvation Army’s angel tree program, which matches children in need with anonymous donors who buy the gifts.

Some 1,547 senior citizens will also receive gifts this Christmas. And 925 gift cards will be distributed to agencies serving foster children and children and adults with disabilities.

In cases where donors don’t step up, Charlotte Observer readers cover the expense by giving to the Empty Stocking Fund. Money raised by last year’s Empty Stocking Fund allowed the Salvation Army to purchase 11,541 toys and 590 gifts for low-income seniors, in addition to the 925 gift cards.

Christmas wishes

Moise feels unsafe in the West Charlotte hotel where she and her children are staying. As she sat in her car one recent evening and talked by phone with a reporter, the parking lot suddenly flooded with police cars and a criminal suspect was violently apprehended.

She said she grew up in a violent household. And while she always strives to make the space she calls home a peaceful one, she doesn’t want her children to have to worry about what’s happening outside their walls, either.

“I pray, I say, ‘God, let them see me like a mother that really loves them, and wants the best for them, and is here,’ ” she says. “I’m doing everything I can let them see that.”

Moise wishes she could be the one to go shopping for her kids’ gifts and pick out exactly what would make them smile the brightest on Christmas morning. But she’s grateful to whomever plucks her sons’ angels off a local Salvation Army angel tree and fulfills their wish lists.

Daniel, who’s in the first grade, loves art, basketball and building things. He’s into magnetic building blocks and making objects from his imagination come to life.

Deon’tae is a fifth grader who enjoys swimming and finds his escape by listening to music and dancing. On his angel tree card, his mom asked for a pair of nice headphones so he can turn up the tunes and dance.

She’d love to see his wish fulfilled, because throughout a tumultuous school year, Deon’tae has remained on his school honor roll and impressed his teachers.

“I told him, ‘Deon’tae, I’m so proud of you, you have no idea.’ ”

Planning for the new year

She’s hoping she’ll be able to get a better paying job with more stability in the coming year, and with extra income from her older children, to be able to move into more permanent housing.

She’s got a passion for helping people, she says, which makes receiving help that much harder.

But she’s determined to take the good deeds others are doing for her family this season and pass them along when she is able.

“I just want my life to be different,” she says, “so I can bless another family.”

How to donate

To donate to the Empty Stocking Fund online: EmptyStockingFundCLT.org.

To donate by mail, send checks to: The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte, P.O. Box 31128, Charlotte, NC 28231. Make checks payable to The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte and write “Empty Stocking Fund” in the memo line.

Questions concerning your donation? Call 704-716-2769.

We’ll publish all donors’ names.

This story was originally published December 12, 2019 at 7:00 AM.