Holiday Partners sees fewer York County families in need in 2015

Hundreds of children in York County had a joyful Christmas this year, thanks to volunteers with and donors to the United Way of York County’s Holiday Partners project.

And there’s more good news: The project helped more than 300 fewer children in 2015 than it did the previous year – because fewer people sought help.

“We hope that’s a sign that people are better off,” said project coordinator Jeanie Dubrouillet. “It seems like across the board, there were fewer people asking for help this year.”

The United Way’s Holiday Partners is a collaborative effort between The Herald’s Empty Stocking Fund and WRHI’s Toys for Happiness, providing toys for children across York County.

The program serves children from birth to age 14. Families apply for the assistance.

The project served 681 families with 1,577 children in 2015, Dubrouillet said. A year earlier, it helped more than 800 families with 1,925 children.

“The community was so generous and helpful this year,” Dubrouillet said. “We appreciate how people just stepped forward and gave so deeply out of their pockets early in the season, which was very helpful.

“To me, one of the most important things is that people who are down and out this time of year, that they feel the love of the season and the love of their community.”

Rebecca Melton, president of the United Way of York County, said Holiday Partners can help families on a tight budget stay on track with essential expenses like rent, food and utilities. Many of them don’t have extra money for gifts.

Without the assistance from Holiday Partners, she said, “sometimes they may delay a bill or not pay it that month because they don’t want to see their children not having something at the holidays.”

Herald Editor Mark Rochester said the newspaper is proud to sponsor the Empty Stocking Fund each year.

“We want to thank everyone in the community who gave so generously this year to help others in need,” he said. “When you read the stories of area residents whose situations were greatly affected by support from the program, you can’t help but feel a sense of community and caring that is pretty special.”

Allan Miller, managing partner with WRHI, called the project a tremendous success. WRHI began Toys for Happiness about 30 years ago.

“It’s continued to grow each year,” he said, adding that Toys for Happiness helped 200 to 300 families in addition to its efforts through Holiday Partners.

“Our goal was to try to make sure every family got a bike,” Miller said. “We didn’t quite make it, but we were very close this year. That’s what kids want for Christmas. It’s the No. 1 request that we get every year.”

This story was originally published January 5, 2016 at 4:25 PM with the headline "Holiday Partners sees fewer York County families in need in 2015."