Every Christmas season, CLDI has partnered with Orchard Elementary and Riverside Middle School, located in the heart of the South Side, to host our annual South Side Christmas Stores.

• The Orchard Elementary Christmas Store is intended to give parents a sense of pride and accomplishment through a dignified means of purchasing gifts this holiday season. 
• The Riverside Middle School Store exists to give students the opportunity to give gifts to family and friends. This year will be the 16th year to host the Orchard Store and our 7th year with the Riverside Store.
• Through our work, we have found that it is a great benefit to assist families in providing for their own needs. Last year at Orchard, 92 families representing around 275 kids, and Riverside saw 500 students shopping for their friends and family. We also had over 149 volunteers (which included setting up, wrapping, cleaning, etc.) accumulating over 500 volunteer hours for the Christmas store. Many parents express gratitude for this being an option for them and how much it truly helps to love their family and give their kids a good Christmas. 

One of the beautiful aspects of these stores is the premise/philosophy on which it is built. All the gifts are NEW! How does that happen? Community! This could not happen apart from collaboration with others! New gifts are donated and then sold at drastically reduced prices so parents and students alike can see their dollars go much further this holiday season!

That being said, would you be willing to…

• Shop for brand-new gifts! Items could be gifts for kids (lego sets, games, crafts, sports equipment) or items for adults (spa kits, wallets, gloves, speakers, etc.)
• Donate funds (this allows others to purchase gifts to be sold at the stores)

It is important to note that all funds raised for this event are 100% pass-through. Any money made from the sale is split 50/50 between Riverside Elementary for school supplies and reinvested into buying presents for next years store.

Thank you so much! Merry Christmas and we look forward partnering with you this Christmas season!

Donate

If you’re unsure about what gifts to buy, consider donating to our Christmas Store Fund instead! We will do the shopping and your donation still makes a huge impact.