RGV community gives third-most donations ever to Spirit of Christmas families

3 hours ago 15

Less is more, at least that was the case for the benevolent efforts of the South Texas community who worked to ensure a merrier Christmas for some of the most vulnerable people in the region.

Recent economic woes that have fluctuated since the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 did little to stymie the giving spirit of the Rio Grande Valley this holiday season, as the United Way of South Texas has reported quite a jump in donations for the Spirit of Christmas campaign.

In its 2024 campaign, the nonprofit organization, its partner school districts and The Monitor helped inspire more monetary and non-monetary contributions for dozens of families from the Mid-Valley, McAllen-Edinburg-Mission area and Western Hidalgo County.

They’re families struggling to make ends meet while either suffering extreme illness, heartbreaking losses, or their beloved homes falling into disrepair, or all of the above. This is unfortunately not uncommon in Hidalgo County communities, considered among the poorest regions in the U.S. with a poverty rate of nearly 27%, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

That’s well above the state average of 14%.

Specifically, campaign organizers told The Monitor this week that while there were fewer donors than in recent memory, people gave more now than in several years, making for the third-most successful fundraising effort on record.

THE NEED

The Valley is never without need. This year, local school districts and the United Way of South Texas once again found another 12 families for The Monitor to feature in hopes that the community would learn of the basic essentials many are in desperate need of, from warm clothes to home repairs.

None of them asked for much when The Monitor came knocking. In fact, families interviewed for the Spirit of Christmas campaign often exhibit modesty and only humbly agreed to share their needs, and it’s always for the sake of their children.

Jose Corona-Guzman, for instance, is now the sole caregiver of his four children after he tragically lost his wife, Emily Garza, due to an insect on her ankle.

After nearly three days in pain and two unsuccessful medical visits, Emily’s skin began to peel and blister. By the time they had decided to go to the hospital once again it was too late, the infection had already reached the vein.

Since that day Jose has had to uproot their life in Weslaco and begin anew in Mission, where he now has to take on the role of both father and mother.

Jose works every day in Brownsville to support his children and build a place they can once again call home.

Another heartbreaking story is that of Atzin Jaimes, who was only 5 years old when she was diagnosed with a stage 4 Wilms tumor, a rare kidney cancer that eventually spread to her liver and lungs.

Her diagnoses flipped her family’s world upside down, changing their lives from one day to the next.

Her parents, Francisca Ruiz and Acatizn Jaimes, had to quit their jobs to provide full-time care for Atzin, who is often in and out of hospitals, as well as their other three children.

Her siblings often worry for Atzin’s health and they wished for their sister’s full recovery as the holiday season neared.

Her parents sell food plates whenever they can to help make ends meet.

Although Atzin continues to battle cancer, her smile never fades.

Unfortunately Atzin’s family isn’t the only one dealing with a cancer diagnosis.

After years of giving back to his community through clothing donations, toy drives, giving out free meals as well as DJing at events for free, the Martinez family has fallen into hardship after Fidencio Martinez was diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2019.

Since then the family has been dealing with financial struggles which have begun to show in their home with signs of wear and tear.

Due to their financial issues Federico has not visited a doctor in about 10 months and has not purchased any medication.

As Christmastime came around, all his wife and four children wanted was for Federico to be OK.

THE GIVING

With the help of the campaign, United Way was able to give each family around $3,000 along with separate donations delivered directly to some of the families.

This year, Lily Lopez, president and chief executive officer of United Way of South Texas, the campaign not only helped those in the community but was also the program’s third most successful year for donations since its initial start in 2000.

Throughout this year’s campaign United Way saw a total of $50,847 in donations delivered to their office with an additional $1,700 that was directly donated to some of the families, equaling to about $52,547 in donations.

“That is like a 60% increase over what we had last year,” Lopez said, adding that the 2023 campaign raised $38,089.

“We had several significant contributions that contributed to the increase,” Lopez said. “We actually had, I would say fewer donors … but the designations were larger and that’s why we have this tremendous increase.”

Although she could not disclose the donor, Lopez explained that there was one individual who delivered a significant donation and also helped repair the roofing and other basic house repairs for two of the families in need.

The families received their first check in December, with each check ranging from about $200 to $9,000.

“That is life-changing,” Lopez said. “They were extremely grateful.”

Lopez explained that each of the families would be receiving their second donation on Friday morning with checks ranging from $2,800 to $3,300 for each family.

The funds donated by the community are collected by United Way, which then cuts checks for the school districts to distribute to the recipient families.

In fact, the school districts play an important role in connecting United Way with families they identify as being in need.

THE HISTORY

United Way has also been helping families in need with donations during the holidays well before its partnership with The Monitor, which didn’t begin until 2019.

Since 2000, United Way has helped raise $678,495 for local families, which includes the money raised for the Spirit of Christmas campaign. This has helped 395 families, 227 of which were adopted by companies looking to help.

In total, the program has benefited 1,782 people in more than 20 years.

Over the last three years, they’ve seen about $16,000 in donations that have gone directly to the families.

This year, and although the Spirit of Christmas campaign focuses on 12 families, the program helped about 253 community members in its entirety.

Lopez added that an additional 29 families were adopted this past year by various companies including Vantage Bank, IBC Bank, South Texas Health System, Target Stores, Hidalgo County Drainage District No.1, Hidalgo County Precinct 2, Kendra Scott and the Hidalgo County Health and Human Services Department.

Through the campaign, those in the community donated toys, household items, monetary donations and other items to help the families in need.