by ARCADIA, Wis. – Marking the 24th year of giving, Ashley’s Angels, a non-profit organization led by Ashley Furniture Industries (Ashley), continued the tradition of bringing holiday cheer to children in need. The organization was able to make a significant impact to the communities surrounding Ashley facilities in Mississippi, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, with a total of 1,317 receiving children and over $316,000 raised.
One hundred percent of the funds raised through the organization provide food, clothing and special gift requests for children in need during the holiday season. This year’s fundraising efforts included spaghetti dinners, a bass fishing tournament, bingo nights, a poker run, hoagie sales, t-shirt sales, and employee contributions through Ashley’s Dollar-A-Week program.
Each year, in early December, the organization holds shopping days in each state where volunteers help shop for the children, filling giant gift bags with new coats, boots, clothes, toys and more. All of the gift bags are then loaded onto an Ashley semi where they await their delivery, with Santa Claus – just in time for Christmas.
“The community appreciates Ashley’s Angels being that it helps in a lot of ways; from donating turkeys to giving out Christmas gifts to kids in need. The tears we see when the parents pick up the gifts is priceless, and no words can explain it,” said Joseph Schmoyer, Ashley’s Angels-Pennsylvania Board Member. “Knowing kids will have a great Christmas because of our program is all I need for Christmas every year. My wife and kids help each year, we all love it.”
Ashley’s Angels works with local churches and schools to identify local families in need of extra assistance. Every child in the program, along with his or her sibling(s), receives winter apparel and shoes (as needed), clothes, a blanket, and a special Christmas present. Each child’s family also receives a delicious holiday meal.
Ashley’s Angels was established by an Ashley truck driver from Mississippi in 1997 after he heard about a girl who was living in a car with her mother. The Ashley driver recruited help from fellow drivers to provide food, clothing, and additional assistance by helping the family find proper housing before Christmas. Seeing the impact their efforts had made in this family’s life encouraged those involved to form Ashley’s Angels.
