Instead of making your holiday wish list, take a look at someone else’s. The Community Service club needs you to participate in their holiday gift drive.

“We have students and staff all over the building that want to be generous to someone that will appreciate it,” stated Mary Collins, Community Service director. “This doesn’t always mean giving to your mother or giving to your sister. People get a lot of satisfaction knowing that an 8 year-old girl who wants a friendship bracelet kit got her holiday wish.”

Collins explained that some of the items needed are necessities to live and some of the items are fun toys that will put a smile on the kids’ faces. Gifts can be brought to the main lobby from now until next week. During the week of Dec. 1 Community Service members will distribute paper mittens with gift requests on them during all lunch periods. If you can’t donate a gift, Collins said that they will also be looking for any volunteers that want to help distribute mittens.

Paper mittens were chosen because they have no religious tie to anything. When Margaret Port, class of 2012, started the drive in 2009 she wanted the gift drive to be religiously neutral.

“It’s a very universal thing,” said Collins. “They could be celebrating Kwanzaa or Hanukkah, we don’t know.”

Since 2009, the drive has grown significantly with the amount of donations increasing every year. This year they are expecting their biggest turnout yet.

Because of how well the Gift Drive went last year, the drive was able to expand and help more organizations than they ever have. The gift drive sponsors include Rice Children Center, Family Focus, The YWCA, Child Care Network and Connection for the homeless. These organizations help a wide variety of people and while a great deal of them are kids, a few holiday gifts are things the homeless need in order to be successful.

“There are so many people in this building willing to help,” said Collins. “You should be one of them.”