My dear friends and beloved family,
Sam and I have created this page because as the season of Christmas approaches, we know that some folks will be reaching out to us and asking that age-old question: “What do you want for Christmas?”
SKIP LETTER AND GO DIRECTLY TO OUR WISH LIST
We’d like to answer that question unequivocally: Nothing.
While we both love Jesus and celebrate the festival of Jesus’ birth, we do not believe that the way Christmas is typically celebrated in this country, in this day and age, is in alignment with Christ’s teachings.
We think the exchange of small gifts as tokens of affection can be a lovely practice, and that if you’ve found something that it would make your heart happy to share with us, we gratefully accept your kind gesture. And if there’s a way we can help YOU out with something you need this season, we’d be happy to do so, too.
However, we can no longer participate in the ritual of making lists of things that we want people to buy for us. We have everything we need and we’re grateful for our abundance. Our heartfelt desire now is to share what we have in excess. We deeply believe that all humankind is one interdependent family, and we are most interested in facilitating the sharing of resources between those who have much and those who have little.
If you are someone who wants to show your love for us this Christmas through gift-giving and you don’t know what to buy, we ask that you please give a donation, in the amount that you would have spent on us (or, heck, more if you feel like it) to one of the organizations listed here. Or, if there’s another charitable organization that’s dear to you that we haven’t mentioned, please feel free to give to them instead!
The Denver Indian Family Resource Center provides many forms of assistance to Native families living in the Denver area, including emergency utilities assistance for families struggling to pay their heating bills in the wintertime. Donate here.
Muslim Advocates is an organization that defends the civil rights and religious freedom of Muslims in America in the justice system as well as the legislative arena. Donate to support this much-needed work here.
Planned Parenthood promotes women’s health and is especially important in its role of providing critical services to underserved and underinsured populations. They’ll be facing defunding attempts in the coming months; please consider helping them continue to help women. Donate here.
The Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition offers many important services to immigrants and their families, including helping people understand their voting rights, assisting people who are facing deportation, helping people become legal residents, and promoting education. Donate here.
We so very much appreciate your willingness to reimagine this holiday tradition with us and use this giving opportunity to make life a little better for someone in need. Thank you and Merry Christmas!
Love,
Angie & Sam
Heartland Soul 