by Britney Weber
Senior Staff Writer
As of Monday, 30 children are being sponsored by Bryan College through Angel Tree Ministries.
“It really has been a blessing to be a part of what Angel Tree is doing. I’ve had conversations with parents in tears on the phone trying to communicate what a blessing this ministry is to them during this season,” said senior Hannah Camp, who is in charge of Angel Tree at Bryan.
Several students at Bryan chose to get involved with Angel Tree this year, forming groups to sponsor a child.
“I’ve done Angel Tree before. Almost every year throughout high school… my mom, brother and I would work a good many hours helping to wrap, organize, etcetera,” said senior Millie Jones. “Andrew Sweeny and I had so much fun shopping for our 8-year old boy, and it’s gratifying to know that we contributed to hopefully making his Christmas better.”
Helping out with Angel Tree has helped remind students of the joy that comes with the season of giving.
“Last year, I helped Melissa [Brown] with a lot of the planning, gathering, storing and delivery of presents. I love being able to help children who do not have the blessing of their parents in the house,” said senior Michael Shroeder. “It was a joy to get to give them some presents from their parents and see their faces light up!”
According to its website, Angel Tree is “a ministry that reaches out to the children of inmates and their families with the love of Christ.” Angel Tree seeks to bring reconciliation to those imprisoned and to reach out to their families during the Christmas season and is a part of Prison Fellowship Ministries.
“Last year I helped Dani Park with the prison ministry. Doing this created a whole new outlook on children affected by their parents’ imprisonment. When talking with the ladies in the jail who had children, I realized their conversation was filled with talking about their kids. If for any reason they are sorry for what they did, it is because of the effects it has had on their children. Many really do want their kids to have a merry Christmas,” said junior Chelsea Parham.
Some of the gifts bought and delivered included dolls, socks and underwear, books, puzzles, games and Legos®, “because an 8-year-old Christmas is made better by Legos,” said senior Andrew Sweeny.