Father’s Day is this weekend and before people run out to grab a traditional “dad gift,” one Texas charity asks people to switch things up and give in a different way this year.
Instead of a round of golf or another neck tie, The Miracle Foundation wants people to take the money they would spend on a Father’s Day president and make a donation to honor their dads and help children who don’t have a dad, or a mom.
“It’s really wonderful to them to be honored by their own kids, by taking care of others kids who don’t have dads like them,” said Heather Shaw, Director of Development for The Miracle Foundation.
The donations made through Sunday will fund sports and recreation equipment for orphans at the 21 orphanages the non-profit group supports in rural India.
“This for them would be like Christmas,” Shaw said. “They just light up when they get gifts like this, they just get so excited to play.”
Cricket is the most popular sport in India but without the proper equipment the kids are left to use tree bark and banana leaves as bats.
The Austin-based new group’s Father’s Day campaign gives children who have so little a unique opportunity—a chance to play.
“The children in India are no different, I mean they are children,” said Chip Brees.
The father of three kids, Brees has collected many different Father’s Day gifts from his children. From arts and craft projects to packages of steaks—the presents are a sign of appreciation, to thank Brees for being there and being their dad.
Brees said, “Our purpose is to really just affirm the children and be there for the children and play with the children and let them know that they are loved.”
Everyday Brees would come home from work and play with his kids, to be present and let them know he loves them.
Now that his three children are grown, they’ve started to share that love through the Miracle Foundation.
“I think it’s very meaningful that they would want to do that in honor of us,” Brees said.
His Father’s Day gift will help buy a cricket set for one of the orphanages.
“It means the world to them,” Brees said, “These are children who, have drawn a black bean in life… Having to grow up without a family, without parents.”
Brees plans to travel to India next month to visit the orphanages and play with the children for the same reason he played with his own—to let them know they are loved.
Shaw, with the Miracle Foundation, said, “What we’re doing is providing them with a childhood that’s full of joy and a future that’s full of hope.”
To make a donation in your dad’s name, you can visit The Miracle Foundation’s website.
Donation levels range from $25-$135, offering sports apparel and equipment as well as a certificate to honor dads.
· $25 – Provides athletic apparel for a child
· $50 – Provides two cricket sets for an orphanage
· $85 – Provides a bundle of sports & recreation equipment for a whole orphanage (soccer balls, volleyballs, badminton equipment, board games, etc.)
· $135 – Provides all the sports & recreation equipment for a home
The Miracle Foundation works with orphans from 4-22 years old. Even after they technically age-out of the orphanages, The Miracle Foundation continues its efforts until the kids become self-sustaining adults. That work includes career counseling and assessment, helping orphans find and apply for college and also providing scholarships
