The holiday season is a financially stressful time, but even more for low income households. With 8.2 million Americans currently behind on their rent and over 20 million Americans without enough food to eat, the situation they face is dire. Fortunately, there are several organizations providing help with Christmas gifts and meals this 2023 holiday season. In this article, we will provide you with a complete list of Free Christmas Gifts for Low Income Families in 2023.
In addition, we will provide you with all the information you need to access the free Christmas assistance available to low income households this 2023 holiday season. This includes registration and application information, as well as deadlines.
For more information on how you can get free Christmas gifts, toys, and meals this 2023 holiday season, continue reading below.
Free Christmas Gifts for Low Income Families (2023 Guide)
If you are struggling buy food or Christmas gifts for your children this holiday season, there is help available to you. There are a variety of nonprofit organization and programs that offer holiday assistance and free Christmas gifts for low income families.
Check out our complete list of organizations offering help this 2023 holiday season below.
Salvation Army Christmas Programs
The Salvation Army may be one of the most-popular organizations for holiday assistance. That’s because they provide a variety of services to those in need during the holiday season.
Among them is the Rescue Christmas program, also referred to as the red kettles and jingling bells. Donations help provide shelter, food assistance, and other services to those struggling to meet their financial needs.
If your family needs help with food, clothing, or gifts this holiday season, please contact your local Salvation Army chapter.
To learn more and find out what help is available to you this 2023 holiday season, click here.
Click here to find a local Salvation Army near you.
Angel Tree Program for Free Holiday Gifts
Walmart and The Salvation Army are teaming again to provide help to millions of children in need this 2023 holiday season.
The Angel Tree program provides new clothing and toys to more than one-million children and families in local communities each year.
Once a child is accepted for the Angel Tree Program, donors can shop from the family’s Christmas wish list. Once the gifts are received, The Salvation Army will distribute them to the family just in time for Christmas morning.
If your family would like to apply for Angel Tree assistance for Christmas 2023, you will need to contact your local Salvation Army.
Submit your 2023 Angel Tree Application here.
Click here to find a local Salvation Army near you.
Operation Homefront Holiday Toy Drive
Operation Homefront’s Holiday Toy Drive helps bring holiday cheer to military families. For over a decade, they’ve partnered with Dollar Tree to provide military families with support during the holiday season.
Dollar Tree stores take toy donations, typically in November and December to help make the holidays brighter for our military families. In 2019, over 1,000 military children received toys from our Holiday Toy Drive.
To participate, start by registering for an Operation Homefront account. When you are eligible for the event, it will appear on your Account Dashboard. Once the event appears in your dashboard, you can register to attend and get help.
To learn more, visit their website at operationhomefront.org.
Santa’s Helpers Foundation
Santa’s Helpers Foundation is on a mission is to bring joy to children, while helping to relieve poverty.
They achieve this by offering programs and services that are designed to alleviate financial burden and promote youth literacy and physical fitness.
Each year, they donate food, clothing and gifts to low-income families during the holiday season.
To receive a free toy through the Santa’s Helpers Foundation, submit an application on their website.
Registration closes December 10, 2023, so please submit your complete registration ASAP to allow for sufficient time for verification, approval, and to have requests seen by Santas!
Please only submit one application per household. Submitting multiple applications can delay or cause an application to be denied.
Wilbert Manigault International Ministries Holiday Toy Giveaway
Wilbert Manigault International Ministries is a non-profit charity organization that partners with the Black Girl Beauty Foundation to spread holiday cheer each year. The mission of their Holiday Giveaway is to provide low-income families with gifts.
The 4th Annual Holiday Toy Giveaway is for kids age 1-12 and takes place in three different locations:
- Harrisburg, PA (Harrisburg registration)
- Swansea, SC (Swansea registration)
- Atlanta, GA (Atlanta registration)
Registration closes on November 30, 2023 or once they have reached capacity, so please complete your registration as soon as possible.
USPS Operation Santa
For over 100 years, the United States Postal Service has been hosting Operation Santa. The initiative allows children and families from all over the United States to write letters to Santa sharing their Christmas wishes. The mission of the USPS Operation Santa program is to answer these letters.
Once the letter to Santa is received, generous individuals can “Adopt a Letter” and help make a holiday wish come true.
If you would like to receive help getting your child’s Christmas wishes fulfilled, click here to find out how to write a letter to Santa.
The deadline is December 10, 2023.
Be an Elf Free Toy Program
Be an Elf is a nonprofit organization that helps underprivileged children receive gifts during Christmas. The organization helps families write letters to Santa through the USPS Operation Santa® Program.
Individuals can then adopt real letters and send gifts directly to the children in-need who wrote them. There’s no middle man or charity, it’s direct from the donor to a child.
Many letters are written by kids and Moms who ask only for “a warm coat for my 5 year old,” “new shoes, size 6,” or other basic necessities. Volunteers at Christmas may mail their gifts directly to children who need a brighter Christmas.
If your family is struggling financially, this is a great option on how you might be able to get some extra Christmas gifts for your kids.
Click here to find out how to get free Christmas gifts for your family.
The deadline is December 12, 2023.
Toys for Tots Free Gift Program
Toys for Tots is a national nonprofit that delivers hope to less-fortunate children during the holiday season. They work with local agencies to deliver unwrapped Christmas toys and gifts for kids.
For decades, the Marine Toys for Tots Program has collected and distributed new toys to less fortunate children at Christmas. Applications to receive toys can be filled out online.
First, use this map to find the local chapter accepting Toy Applications for the 2023 holiday season. The local chapter’s page will have links to family and agency toy applications.
Lions Club Christmas Assistance
The Lions Club offers various free Christmas assistance programs that are available to low-income families. Whether it’s a free holiday meal or free gifts for children, there are a lot of programs you can take advantage of.
Lions Club chapters are located worldwide and host a variety of events to help families during the holiday season. They’ll distribute items such a Christmas trees and toys, host holiday meal events, and more.
To find out how you can get help from the Lions Club this 2023 holiday season, click here to find a chapter near you.
Boys & Girls Clubs of America Holiday Help
The Boys & Girls Clubs of America is a nonprofit organization that focuses on helping kids succeed. Their mission is to enable all young people, especially those who need them the most, to reach their full potential.
Many local Boys & Girls Club Chapters provide after-school programs for kids around the country. In addition, several chapters also host holiday programs such as holiday toy drives and free holiday meals to help those financially struggling during the holidays.
Not all clubs participate in holiday assistance, so you will have to find your local club, contact them, and ask them if they have any Christmas toy drive programs for families in need during the Christmas season.
In addition, each toy drive has different qualification requirements, so parents should call their local branch for more information. Most branches will allow children under the age of 18 to participate.
Additionally, your household income must also be 150% lower than the 2023 U.S. Federal Poverty Level to receive free toys and gifts.
Click here to a find a local Boys & Girls Club near you.
Assistance League Holiday Assistance
The Assistance League is a nonprofit organization with a mission to transform the lives of children through community programs. During the holiday season, Assistance League chapters offer various holiday programs to disadvantaged families.
The organization often hosts programs where members can adopt struggling families for the holiday season by providing them with gifts, food baskets, and decorations.
In addition, some chapters also host a “Santa’s Closet,” that offers help in the form of gift cards from supermarkets and local retailers.
Please contact your local chapter to find out what Christmas assistance is being offering for the 2023 holiday season.
To find an Assistance League chapter near you, click here.
YMCA Christmas Assistance
The YCMA is the leading nonprofit committed to strengthening individuals and communities across the country.
Each year, the YMCA partners with different organizations like Toys for Tots and Salvation Army to provide Christmas assistance to local low-income families.
Chapters across the United States offer various programs throughout the holidays to help give families a joyful Christmas.
To find out what assistance is being offered for the 2023 holiday season, please contact your local YMCA location.
Click here to find the local YMCA near you.
Catholic Charities Christmas Help
Catholic Charities is a nonprofit organization that provides service to people in need. They have a range of programs to help, such as a “Christmas food basket” program, that gives families a good Christmas dinner.
In addition, many Catholic Charities chapters have an “adopt-a-family” program where needy families are matched with donors who provide them with free toys, clothes, and other items in the spirit of holiday help.
For more information on assistance available this 2023 holiday season, please contact your local chapter.
Click here to find a Catholic Charities near you.
United Way Free Christmas Assistance Help
United Way helps raise money for local communities during the holiday season. They pride themselves in being a resource where low-income families can turn to for assistance and education.
They’ll help refer needy families to local nonprofit organizations that will provide them with the resources they need to have a merry Christmas.
You can contact the United Way for help with free Christmas assistance near you by dialing 2-1-1 on your phone.
In addition, you can click here to find the United Way chapter near you.
The Family Giving Tree Gift Distribution
The Family Giving Tree is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving in-need children with wished-for holiday gifts and backpacks filled with school supplies.
The organization works with partner agencies to get backpacks and holiday gifts into the hands of those who need them the most.
If you are facing financial challenges and need help, please contact your county’s social service department. The Family Giving Tree does not distribute to individuals or families directly.
Prison Fellowship Angel Tree™ Christmas Gift Assistance
Prison Fellowship Angel Tree is a Christian-based organization that partners with churches to give gifts to children with incarcerated parents.
Each year, Angel Tree Christmas™ brings children and their incarcerated mom or dad together on Christmas. The program mobilizes local churches and community organizations to give thousands of children a gift, the Gospel message, and a personal message of love.
To learn more about Angel Tree Christmas™ and how you can receive Christmas gift assistance, click here.
Local School Christmas Assistance & Help
Several public schools offer Christmas assistance programs for low-income students. Several local school programs will provide in need households with free Christmas gifts and meals during the holiday season.
Please contact your local school to get more details about their program and how to qualify.
Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Society of St. Vincent de Paul provides Christmas assistance to those in need, including collecting and distributing toys for kids for the holidays. However, programs may vary by state.
Free Christmas Trees for 2023
The Christmas Tree Project is a nonprofit organization that saw an opportunity to help bring the Christmas spirit to families in need. Their mission is to provide fully decorated Christmas trees to thousands of families who cannot afford them on their own.
Today, they are one of the largest organizations providing free Christmas trees to low-income families during the holiday season. Although they are based out of Colorado, they give away trees across the country.
Click here to Request a Free Christmas Tree for 2023.
Free Christmas Assistance for Low Income Households Summary
We hope this article about the organizations offering Free Christmas Gifts for Low Income Families in 2023 was helpful to you. If you have additional questions, please let us know in the comments section below.
In addition, if you know other organizations offering free Christmas gifts for low income households, please leave those in the comments.
From everyone at the Food Stamps Now team, we wish you a happy and healthy holiday season!
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