Holidays are a time for family, food, joy and generosity. Your Community Foundation believes that every child and adult deserves to share in happiness during this time of year, and we’re proud to support our recent Greater Mercer Grant recipients. Here are some ways our grant partners are celebrating the holiday season and how you can join in by giving back and supporting them.
Performing Arts, Parties and Shopping:
Trenton Circus Squad
Performance
Tuesday, December 6, 6pm-7pm
Roebling Wire Works – 675 South Clinton Avenue, Trenton
Performance
Thursday, December 8, 6pm-7pm
Roebling Wire Works – 675 South Clinton Avenue, Trenton
Contact Zoe Brookes at zoe@trentoncircussquad.org
Trenton Children’s Chorus
Performance with VOICES
Sunday, December 11, 3pm
Hopewell Presbyterian Church
80 W Broad St, Hopewell
Mayor’s Holiday Concert
Saturday, December 17, 5pm
Patriot’s Theater – 1 Memorial Drive, Trenton
Performance with VOICES
Sunday, December 18, 3pm
Miller Chapel at Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton
64 Mercer Street, Princeton
Contact Linda Helm Krapf at linda.helmkrapf@trentonchildrenschorus.org
Trenton Community Music School
Performance at Artworks for the opening of the Mill Hill House Tour
Saturday, December 3, 12pm and 12:30pm
19 Everett Alley, Trenton
Contact Carol Burden at cburden@trentoncommunitymusic.org
Trenton Downtown Association
Trenton’s Pop-Up Holiday Market with food and artisan vendors
Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 11am-5pm
Open through December 31
141 East State Street, Trenton
Contact Tom Gilmour at tom@trenton-downtown.com
UIH Family Partners
Family Night Out – Fun, Food and Gifts
Friday, December 9, 5-8pm
Turning Point Church
15 S. Broad Street, Trenton
Contact Carter Patterson at CPatterson@uih.org
Anchor House
Donations of winter clothing, such as hats, gloves and scarves are always in high demand among the youth served in their residential and community-based programs. To coordinate drop-off, contact Claire Walton at cwalton@anchorhousenj.org or 609-396-8329 X109.
482 Centre St, Trenton
Arm In Arm (formerly Crisis Ministry)
‘Yes We CAN!’ Food Drives is the name of a group of volunteers who seek to alleviate hunger in our area by holding food drives at local markets. The collected food is then donated to Arm In Arm to resupply its food pantries in Princeton and Trenton, where over 4,000 people a month come for free food. Contact Alison Politziner at a.politziner@gmail.com.
Saturday, December 3, 10am-2:30pm
Princeton McCaffrey’s Grocery
301 N. Harrison Street, Princeton
Better Beginnings Child Development Center
During the holiday season, Better Beginnings families are in need of winter clothing such as winter coats, sweaters and children’s boots. Donations can be dropped off Monday-Friday from 9am-4:30pm. Contact Luz Horta at better_beginnings@yahoo.com or 609-448-6226.
318 North Main Street (Entrance on Mechanic St.), Hightstown
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Mercer County
During the holiday season, BBBS would like to hold a food drive for families who need it the most. Non-perishable wish list items include: peanut butter, canned beef stew, tuna, dried beans, rice, oatmeal or boxed cereal, canned soups, canned vegetables, canned chili, instant potatoes, boxed mac & cheese, instant coffee, Bisquick, and cake mix. Items should be dropped off by December 14 between the hours of 8am-5pm by calling 609-656-1000. Contact Anita Hanft at ahanft@bbbsmercer.org.
535 East Franklin Street, Trenton
Mercer Street Friends
Create a Send Hunger Packing food collection bag for children. In partnership with local schools, the Mercer Street Friends Food Bank provides children facing hunger with nutritious kid-friendly food to take home on Friday afternoons during the school year to ensure that children have meals to eat over the weekend and that they return to school nourished and ready to learn on Monday. Choose 6 items and collect, pack the food into gallon sized ziplock bags creating care packages. Food options include: shelf-stable 2% milk; single-serve 100% juice boxes; cereal (individual bowls or boxes); ready-to-eat tuna with or without crackers; microwaveable entrees or bowls; peanut butter in jars or individual cups; grape jelly in plastic containers; yogurt smoothie drinks in shelf-stable brick packs; granola bars; pudding and applesauce. Drop off until December 14 around Princeton’s campus: 185 Nassau Street; 701 Carnegie Center; Jadwin Gym lobby.
Drop off Monday – Friday 9am-4:30pm until December 22 at the Food Bank. Contact Brian Peterson at bpeterson@mercerstreetfriends.org.
Enterprise Park – 828 Silvia Street, Ewing
Princeton Nursery School
In addition to partnering with the Princeton YMCA to run a gift drive through The Giving Tree, each year Princeton Nursery School identifies some of their parents who are in need of a winter coat. If you would like to donate adult winter coats, drop them off Monday-Friday from 7:30am-5:30pm to Wendy Cotton at pnskids@gmail.com.
78 Leigh Ave, Princeton
Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK)
Annual holiday festivities at TASK bring together members of the community for meals as well as gift distribution for both children and adults. TASK is open every Monday through Friday, even on holidays. They also give holiday gifts and winter clothing, including hats, scarves, gloves, crayons and coloring books, and stuffed animals, to all TASK patrons during the Christmas season. During the week of December 19, new hoodies, men’s tube socks, skull caps, gloves, scarves and hygiene bags (deodorant, soap, shampoo, tooth brush, toothpaste and razor) will be provided to all patrons. Additional donations of work boots, blankets, sleeping bags, rain ponchos and chapsticks are encouraged. Contact Charlie Orth at charlieo@trentonsoupkitchen.org or 609-695-5456 X114 to arrange for delivery at the double doors: Monday-Thursday 8:30am-4:45pm and Friday 8:30am-12:45pm.
72 Escher Street, Trenton
Boys & Girls Club of Mercer County
Donations of winter clothing such as new hats, scarves and gloves, and a variety of math and reading workbooks for Grades K-8 are of need this holiday season. For the Club facilities, looking for gently used or new digital cameras/tablets for each of the 7 Trenton sites. Contact Kelly Watts for drop off at kwatts@bgcmercer.org or 609-392-31-91 x127. Drop off Monday-Friday 9am–6pm and Saturdays 9am–3pm by December 19.
212 Centre Street, Trenton
Children’s Home Society of NJ
CHS of NJ collects holiday presents and gives the at-risk children of our community a special holiday. Holiday gifts from generous donors are so much more than toys and clothing; your gift may be the only present a local child unwraps around the holidays and it will remind them that someone cares. To find out children’s gift wish list or set up a drop-off time, contact Angie Giacolona at agiacolona@chsofnj.org or 609-695-6274 Ex. 225. You can also donate unwrapped presents for the general gift drive by dropping them off by December 19.
635 South Clinton Avenue, Trenton
CYO
The focus this holiday season is on providing a holiday present for each of the 1,000 children enrolled in the CYO Pre Schools and After School programs operated at 9 sites throughout Mercer County. At most sites, there’s a visit from Santa to deliver these gifts and also provide special goodies in a party atmosphere. The CYO Bromley Center offers a food pantry for needy neighborhood residents and welcomes donations of a wide range of non-perishable foods and stocking stuffer items for holiday food baskets. All donations should be dropped off by December 9 and coordinated with Donna Marie Clancy at dclancy@cyomercer.org or 609- 587- 8100.
1801 East State Street, Hamilton
HomeFront
Each holiday season, community members ‘adopt’ one or more HomeFront children to provide holiday presents. HomeFront will supply the child’s gender, age and a gift wish list so that each child will have presents to open on Christmas Day. Last holiday season over 3,300 homeless or formerly homeless HomeFront children had their special Christmas Wishes granted by an outpouring of community support. As parents pick up the presents of their children that they would never have been able to afford, we witness the genuine gratitude. To participate, please call 609-989-9417, ext. 133 or email homefront@homefrontnj.org.
Unwrapped gifts must be delivered to HomeFront between December 5 and 14.
1880 Princeton Ave, Lawrenceville
Millhill Child & Family Development Center
Help give all of the Millhill children and families a festive holiday season by donating a single holiday present or be paired with an entire family. Additionally, give the gift of warmth this winter by donating new or gently used coats. You can donate for general distribution or be matched with a specific child or family. Contact Mary Ellen Allocca to schedule a dropoff at mallocca@millhillcenter.org or 609-989-7333 ext 120.
101 Oakland Street, Trenton
National Junior Tennis & Learning of Trenton
NJTLT has a Tennis Holiday Wish List in collaboration with their Giving Tuesday campaign. They are looking for gently used modern racquets, tennis sneakers, tennis balls, racquet strings, tennis bags and lightly used tennis clothing. Donated items will go directly to their students who are in need of tennis equipment and apparel to keep them on the court. All donations can be donated by December 23. Contact Robert Howland at rhowland@njtloftrenton.org.
949 West State Street, Trenton
Princeton YWCA
The YWCA’s St. Nicholas Project is seeking help spreading cheer this holiday season. The project provides holiday presents to help local families in need create the magic of Christmas in their own homes. Efforts are led by Princeton resident Jill Jachera. You can become “St. Nicholas” and choose to sponsor a large family, a small family, or an individual. Toys, clothes, gift cards and food are greatly needed and appreciated. Contact Jill at jill.jachera@gmail.com by December 7 with your contact information (name, email address, and phone number) and you will be provided with a wish list for a particular family and/or individual. Gifts should be new and unwrapped and must be dropped off on Tuesday, December 13, between 8am – 12pm.
YWCA Princeton’s Bramwell House
59 Paul Robeson Place, Princeton
Princeton YMCA
Each holiday season, the Princeton Family YMCA collects over gifts for students enrolled in the Princeton Young Achievers (grades K – 5) program and the Princeton Nursery School (ages 2 ½ to 5.). Community members are encouraged to stop by and visit The Giving Tree, located in the lobby of the YMCA’s Athletic Building. Select a gift request ornament, created by Princeton Day School students, and purchase a holiday present for a child in your community. The ornament is yours to keep as a token of appreciation for your generosity. Visit The Giving Tree M-F 5:30am-10pm, Saturday 7am-8pm and Sunday 9am-8pm.
Labyrinth Books (116 Nassau St, Princeton) also holds a book drive for the students in the Princeton Young Achievers program. Select a book request from their giving tree and purchase the book to donate.
Return all gifts unwrapped to the Princeton YMCA by December 16. Contact Denise Soto at DSoto@princetonymca.org.
59 Paul Robeson Place, Princeton
RISE/A Community Service Partnership
Help Rise give out 900 smiles by purchasing a holiday present for a child ($30 limit) or sign up to help an entire family. The annual holiday gift giving program allows you to select a child by age and gender and then buy clothes, toys or a gift for that child. Rise also welcomes generic unwrapped gifts and gift cards so that Rise can match the gift with a registered child. The holidays are so stressful for parents and grandparents who want their children and grandchildren to feel the joy of the season. The relief on their faces when they realize that their kids are going to be so excited is wonderful. To learn more, contact Maitiel Jimenez at mjimenez@rise-community-services.org or (609) 443-4464, or sign up online at https://goo.gl/e8Vtdx. Drop off Monday to Thursday 9am-1pm & 2pm-4pm, Friday from 9am-1pm by December 9.
116 North Main Street, Hightstown
