December 14, 2020 (Smithfield, RI) – Determined to prevent
the pandemic from dampening holiday spirits, Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode
Island (Neighborhood) rallied its staff and redesigned its seasonal giving
program to ensure a joyous holiday season for underserved children in the
greater Providence area. Now in its 19th year, the program – typically an
extension of the National Education of Association of Rhode Island’s Gingerbread
Express initiative – yielded 750 gifts from staff, for children ages 6 to 10.
To get the gifts into the right hands and hearts after this year’s Gingerbread
Express initiative was cancelled, Neighborhood pivoted and partnered with Tides Family Services and
the McAuley House,
dividing the wrapped gifts into 250 large gift bags so each child will receive
a toy or game, a book, and a set of hat and mittens.
“Through ingenuity and a passion for this seasonal giving
program, our staff and leaders came through once again for children in need,”
said Brenda Seagrave-Whittle, chief marketing officer of Neighborhood. “While
we had to reimagine almost every aspect of the program this year – from
sign-ups, to the drop-offs and packaging of gifts, to the organizations we
partnered with – the one element that remained the same was the giving spirit
of our Neighborhood family. As a result of everyone’s generosity across the
organization, 250 children who may have gone without gifts this year, will have
a smile on their faces over the holidays. This thought warms our hearts.”
In mid-November, Neighborhood began reaching out to staff
about how this year’s program would be handled in light of the public health
crisis. Not long after, online signups surpassed the health plan’s goal and
staff used a web scheduling tool to plan a time to safely drop off at
Neighborhood the gifts they had purchased and wrapped. While staff remained in
their vehicles, a handful of socially-distanced, mask-wearing “elves” popped
open car trunks to gather the gifts for sorting. The program culminated this
week when the “elves” carried 250 gift bags from Neighborhood’s lobby through
the front doors – headed to the children served by Tides Family Services and
the McAuley House.
This effort is one of several charitable initiatives
Neighborhood has undertaken this holiday season. The health plan has also been
focused on sending meals to health care workers at the state’s community health
centers and at hospitals, and to staff at the Rhode Island Community Food Bank.