Northgate Christian Fellowship program makes Christmas merry for 40 families

By Keri Luiz
Assistant Editor

It’s a huge tree, and presents are heaped around it, stacked atop one another and spilling outward in a colorful jumble.

But this is not the living room of Benicia’s wealthiest family. It’s the congregation tree at Northgate Christian Fellowship Church, where volunteers are preparing to separate, tag and distribute the presents to families in the church’s Adopt A Family program.

Pastor Ken Jensen said that program has been held every year for the last 22, making it one of the church’s most cherished traditions.

“We get the names of families, either people who know people (or) people within our church who help people in need. Sometimes we get names from (the) Community Action Council,” Jensen said.

Carol Abreu, the church’s business administrator, and Megan Freedman organize the program. “We contact the head of household in each family and tell them that the church would like to help provide Christmas presents and a Christmas dinner for them, and if they could tell us what gifts the kids would want and what they would want for Christmas,” Jensen said.

The Sunday after Thanksgiving, Northgate’s congregation us told that the Adopt A Family program is active, and the gift gathering begins.

This year has been a record-breaker for needy families to adopt, Jensen said. “We have 40 families, which is by far the most we’ve ever had,” he said. Last year there were 19.

Part of that, he said, has to do with the participation of Benicia agencies in referring families to the church. But most has to do with the ongoing economic downturn.

“Each week we get more and more, because people hear about it, or people know people (in need),” Jensen said. “Actually I had to cut it off last Friday because to be able to promote it, to get it out there and get the gifts back in time, we just had to say as of last Friday we can’t take any more — as much as we want to,” he said.

One thing that helped: One church member was able to take on five families. But Northgate could have taken on so many more, Jensen said.

“It’s challenging for us because the needs get huge. But somehow every year God works it out that we always get everyone taken care of,” he said. “It’s a bit of a miracle.”

This Saturday, volunteers for the program will gather the presents and deliver them, each wearing a Santa hat or reindeer antlers. They’ll sing Christmas carols at doorsteps, “then hand in presents and a Christmas meal for them,” Abreu said.

“It’s very fun and awarding when you’re doing the deliveries,” she said. “There’s certain ones of us that do it every year, and a lot of times we will have families that have never helped, but will bring their kids along so they can see how cool it is to bless another family.

“Some houses you just walk in and you know they really needed our help.”

Jensen said the program also helps dispel notions about the church. “A lot of times the perception of the church is that it is judgmental, too political, hypocritical, all those kind of things you hear,” he said. “We said this year we are going to do everything to change the way that people view the church.

“The only way we’re going to be able to do that is to change the way we act toward them, and give them another picture of what the community of Christ is all about. We just want to serve our communities.”