Christmas at the Cov
Christmas is one of the most magical times of year at Covenant House.
We want our residents to feel all of the warmth and love possible during the holiday season. The holidays can be particularly rough on our homeless youth without family, so we try to go “all out” to really make it special for them.
So what does that look like? Look at the photos below to get a snapshot of the fun!
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The first step to bringing the Christmas spirit is transforming the Cov into a winter wonderland. We were blessed to have SIX fully decorated Christmas trees twinkling throughout our facility. Former Covenant House Board Chair Madeleine Landrieu kicked off the holiday season by donating a beautiful tree, and throwing a tree decorating party for our residents — complete with hot chocolate and caroling!
The tree decorating event was one of many events held at Covenant House in December. We kicked off the first week of December with a Christmas story reading party for our mothers and children, followed by the sixth annual Bead Workshop, hosted by our friends at The Bead Shop. Later that week, we hosted a Saints game screening with snacks onsite, took the residents offsite to the Pelicans game, and took them to a screening of Polar Express.
The next week was full of decorating and delicious food. Residents from the Tulane Medicine Pediatrics program hosted a cookie decorating party onsite.
Two nights later, our annual Door Decorating began. Every year, Covenant House buys wrapping paper and encourages residents to decorating their doors top to bottom with wrapping paper. The results are always amazing, and the talented winner gets a prize!
That week we had two groups come in with special Christmas dinners for our residents, and we had our annual Resident & Staff Luncheon. For the potluck-style luncheon, staff members brought in their favorite homemade dishes and served the residents and their fellow co-workers. Music was playing, the tables were decorated, and there were smiles all around!
Finally, t’was the week before Christmas, and all through the Cov, there were parties and snacks, and gifts full of love! This was the week when all of the offices turned into Santa’s workshop. We make sure that every resident — whether they live onsite in Crisis or ROP, or offsite in independent apartments — gets a Christmas bag filled with clothes, winter attire, toys, games, and essential items. A big thank you to all of the incredible donors who brought us these amazing gifts!
Meanwhile, the parties did not stop! We threw a Christmas party for all of our amazing residents who have moved offsite into their own apartments. Halfway through the party, the kids got a surprise when Santa showed up!
Later on that day, our friends at Praise Church of New Orleans helped our residents decorate the final tree. They provided ornaments, paint, and pizza, and let the creativity and fun begin.
The week wrapped up with a beauty event put on by Vanguard School of Cosmetology. Then, it was finally Christmas weekend. On Christmas Eve, there was bingo, ginger-bread house decorating, Christmas caroling, pizza, and yummy desserts from Haydel’s. The next day, a lovely group of volunteers put on a full Christmas luncheon, and finally it was time for presents!
We can never thank all of our friends in the community enough. It is due to the generosity of strangers that we are able to bring so many events, gifts, and food to our residents. Thank you all for making this yet another joy-filled Christmas!
