LOS ANGELES, Dec. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- For the 66th year in a row, Fred Jordan Mission has invited underprivileged children and their families to come "Home" for Christmas Sunday, December 20th from 10:00 am to 2:00. Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse will greet the children, celebrity Stephanie Pratt from the Hills Television Show and of course Santa and Mrs. Claus will lead more than 10,000 children and moms to the Giveaway tables where each child will receive three to four toys each, blankets, jeans, hoodies, socks, and other assorted warm clothes. In addition, each mother will receive several Christmas dinner food bags. The Family Christmas Celebration will be held at the Fred Jordan Mission, at 445 Towne Avenue, on the corner of East 5th and Towne, in downtown Los Angeles.

Thousands of poor and needy boys and girls faces will light up with joy and wonder when they see the giant mountain of thousands of brand new toys, and realize they can take home what may well be the first NEW toy they have ever received. To thousands of families who do not have a real home, the Fred Jordan Mission is truly their home this Christmas. This party is the highlight of a month-long celebration, with Christmas parties and giveaways for poor and needy families throughout the Southland. Volunteer elves will be cooking warm and fresh cookies so that nutritious milk and cookies will be enjoyed by everyone, not just Santa on this special day!

These disadvantaged little ones and their families will be treated to a variety of entertainment, including Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, courtesy of The Walt Disney Company, Santa and Mrs. Claus, as well as musicians and carolers who will join the celebration to make this a spectacular day for some of the neediest in our midst. Willie Jordan, Mission's President and widow of the Mission's founder, will share the Christmas Story.

The Mission's Annual Christmas Celebration is truly Los Angeles at its best! Christmas carols will fill the air with a sense of community and family in a beautiful expression of sharing "peace on earth, good will to all." Because of the economic disaster, cash donations are down by 30%, while at the same time the number of impoverished people coming to the Mission for help has increased by almost 50%.

However, the Mission reports that many more corporations, schools, churches, and groups of all kinds across the Southland have conducted food drives, blanket drives, new clothing drives and toy drives to benefit impoverished children and families this Christmas, and the Fred Jordan Mission is delighted to announce its second annual "BOXES OF HOPE FAMILY FOOD CAMPAIGN" to help provide not only Christmas Dinner food for impoverished families, but to continue distributing urgently needed food throughout the new year to families who are often forced to choose between paying rent and buying food for their children. Each tax-deductible donation of $25, will give a Christmas "FAMILY FOOD BOX OF HOPE" directly to a needy family right here in our community during the holiday season, and in the new year. An additional $25 will provide new toys, warm clothing and socks for the children. Phone 1-800-964-FOOD and make the donation with a major credit card. Or go on-line to www.fjm.org to purchase a "FAMILY FOOD BOX OF HOPE" that will be given directly to a needy family.

The following groups ran toy drives and food drives, and their members and/or employees will be Volunteer Elves at the Mission's 66th Annual Christmas Celebration: Metro (MTA), The Walt Disney Company, the Teamsters, Deloitte & Touche, Galpin Motors, Allstate Insurance, Kaplan College, Los Angeles Community College District, Pepperdine University, Glendale College, Barbara Walden Cosmetics, Longo Toyota, U.S. Coast Guard, Southern California Edison, Puente Hills Mitsubishi, Pacific Clinics, and the Sikh Community of Los Angeles will distribute gifts to the children and their mothers. Mission elves will also be making fresh warm cookies for every child.

The Mission has fed, clothed and sheltered our community's neediest citizens since 1944. Throughout the year the Mission feeds hundreds of hungry people every day and with the assistance of compassionate donors, volunteers and staff, builds schools and hospitals, distributes food and clothing to the homeless, and makes every holiday special for poor families. We bring badly needed food and clothing to crime-ridden inner cities and provide nutritious meals to the poor.

The Mission is a non-profit, faith-based, educational and relief organization meeting the needs of hungry, homeless and impoverished people, especially children and families in the inner cities of America and around the world.

SOURCE Fred Jordan Mission

Back to top

RELATED LINKS
http://www.fjm.org