Gifts from donors a big help during this family’s first Christmas in Charlotte
Last July, Karisa Wormely and her husband, Damone Myers, felt it was time for a change. So they packed up their Wilmington home and moved with their two kids to Charlotte, excited about the idea of new opportunities.
“It was just time to see something different,” Wormely said.
They’re happy with their new city. Damone works as a mover, and the kids have adjusted to their new schools. Frico, 15, is a freshman in high school. Patricia, 10, is in the fifth grade.
Wormely is a certified nursing assistant who made a career in nursing home care, but has been unable to work in that field since 2012. That’s when doctors had to amputate both of her legs below the knees because of bone deterioration stemming from diabetes.
She has plans to forge a new career in the medical field that she can do in a wheelchair — maybe billing or coding. But for now, she is focused on getting her kids settled and keeping the family on track.
The budget was tight this Christmas with only Damone’s salary coming in, so the family turned to the Salvation Army’s Christmas program for help with gifts for Patricia.
“It helps a lot to be able to put something under the tree for her,” Wormely said.
This year, Patricia was one 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 also received 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.
Donors gave Patricia much of what was on her list: a tablet, a science kit and a bag full of goodies like books and drawing pads.
She also got a new bike she can ride around the family’s southeast Charlotte townhouse.
And they marked their quiet Christmas with a lasagna on the table, candy canes on the tree and a few more smiles thanks to donors in their new city.
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.