Santa Claus welcomes big red Giving Machines to the North Pole

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Happy Thanksgiving, ChurchBeat readers. We appreciate you so much. We pray this season of gratitude is a joyful one for you and your loved ones.
Many American Thanksgiving weekend traditions include turning attention to Christmas decorations and shopping and more, so let’s do just that by taking you to North Pole, Alaska, where Santa Claus ho-ho-heartily welcomed Giving Machines this year.
Imagine a crispy cold bite in the air, fresh white snow on the ground, reindeer with majestic antlers and children gathered around Big Red himself and around big red vending machines for charity.
“It’s always better to give than to receive. That really is true,” Santa said when he unveiled the Giving Machines on Friday. “I never want you to listen to the naysayers. Give what you can when you can and how you can. It’s true that when you give, you actually get healthier for it. It’s good for your mind. It’s good for your spirit. It’s just good for all of us.”
The Giving Machines let “kids from 1 to 92″ pick donation items the way they might buy a Sprite or a Snickers from a vending machine. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints covers 100% of the costs so all money goes to local and global charities to help children, families and seniors with their needs.
For example, donors can help pay for fuel for the mobile mammogram truck of the Breast Cancer Detection Center of Alaska, which provides free detection services to women in outlying villages.
Other available services include support for children who have experienced child abuse, baby formula, winter coats and boots, preschool tuition and more.
More than 500 local and international nonprofit organizations are participating in this year’s Giving Machine initiative in 106 cities.
Items available to donate include nutritious meals, clean water, hygiene kits, shelter, clothing, healthcare, livestock, beehives and chickens.
The North Pole Giving Machines are part of a mobile route. After three weeks at the Santa Claus House in the North Pole, they will move to Anchorage for another three weeks.
The Giving Machines have raised $32 million from 1.5 million donors in seven years.
That’s something even Buddy the Elf could celebrate:
Of course, Santa reminds all people of Jesus Christ and the true meaning of Christmas. As the narrator voiced by Fred Astaire says in the classic movie “Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town”: “Maybe if we could all learn Santa’s beautiful lesson, maybe there would finally be peace on earth and goodwill toward man.”
Elder Mark A. Bragg, the church’s North America West Area president, said Alaska charities are doing the work of Jesus Christ.
“They just go out and do good,” Elder Bragg said. “Jesus Christ is the light of the world. We’re here because of him. We’re here because we want to bless others. It’s what he would do. It’s what he did. It’s what he does.”
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