Adopt-A-Family Gift Room officially open, program still in need of adopters

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV)-- The Adopt-a-Family opened its gift room for families on Wednesday morning.

The gift room is larger this year, offering more space for families to find gifts for their loved ones. About a third of the families in the program will use the gift room.

Nichi Seckinger, AFL-CIO Community Services executive director, said that they are excited about the first day of the gift room.

"We've got our volunteers in-house, and they're ready. It's a little different this year because there's a lot more room for people to shop in. So we're really hoping that it makes it easier for them and more enjoyable, and easier to find things for their household," she said.

One person gets to shop for their entire household. Each household gets a certain number of items for each person in the home.

Seckinger said there are gifts available in the gift room for people of all ages.

"We have clothing items, we have household items for the adults and we have toys and all kinds of things like that," she said. "We have items for the teens. We have stocking stuffers for each child, oranges and mints."

80 families will be going through the gift room on Wednesday. Seckinger said that they are trying get 8 to 10 families an hour through the gift room.

"Really, it will depend on their avalibity and if they can make it in today. We'll countinue to do that until we have everyone served that hasn't been adopted," she said.

Seckinger said that they have enough volunteers, but adopters have slowed down.

"Yesterday, we only put one adoption in the system. If people can adopt, we will love to have them. There's still time for Christmas, and it's getting close," she said. "For a small family, it really takes a couple hours to go out and get items for them. If they don't have time to shop, they can donate gift cards, or they can purchase gift cards from the agency, and we can let those families go shop for their household. There are ways to adopt families, and we can really use the help."

Seckinger said they are a little behind on monetary donations.

"This year were treading $40,000 behind where we were last year. Were a little nervous, but I'm gonna stay postivie it will show up when it needs to," she said.

Seckingner said watching the families go through the gift room is a fun time, but there are some anxious parents.

"We get a lot of calls in these days, leading up to when the gift room opens, because they're afraid that their kids are not gonna get taken care of. Anxious parents and they call and see what is going on," she said. "We understand that anxiety, it's close to Christmas, and they are afarid and if we are not gonna help them, they don't know what they are going to do. Being able to get them in here really matters, and it matters to us because it gives us a sense of relief, the same sense of relief it gives them."

Seckinger said without this community, these folks wouldn't be able to have Christmas.

"That's the thing that really matters the most to us, and so were grateful. For the people that step up and help us with this program," she said.

There are 881 families in the program, and 575 have been adopted. There are 22 families on the waitlist for the gift room.