Get help with Christmas and holiday gifts
The Clay County Cooperative Benevolence Ministry helps to pay for the Clay County Christmas Assistance Program. This program provides families in need with Christmas and holiday gifts for their children and loved ones. In the community, there was a lack of assistance which led to some children and families not receiving any holiday gifts. Many people were receiving Christmas gifts from more than one organization, but sadly other families were receiving no assistance from any programs or organizations.
The county has developed an application process for Christmas assistance programs, which has helped them to coordinate with various providers and give assistance to more families in need during the holiday season.
The program has been around for a while but it is not perfect. Some organizations, groups, and charities are still unaware of the program and its primary function.
This means that even if you apply to the program, there is no guarantee that you will receive help. Unfortunately, there were a number of families who did not apply for assistance by the deadline, returned it to the wrong place, or failed to apply. Some of the families were instead assisted by the Brazil Police Department through their Shop-With-A-Cop program, where cops take families shopping for Christmas.
The program is very comprehensive. In 2008, they helped around 340 families with 767 kids in Clay County by giving them presents for the holidays. If this program is not what you need or if you do not qualify, there are other holiday and Christmas programs available.
The program is always in need of donations. If anyone from a church, agency, or organization would like to contribute to the county-wide Christmas Assistance Program, they can call (812) 446-4357 for more details or to apply to the program.