Hazard Goodwill Raises $500, Brings Holiday Joy to Preschoolers
Today Goodwill employees in Hazard transformed their store into a holiday field trip for LKLP Head Start preschoolers, continuing a nearly decade long tradition of staff funded gifts and festivities. The event highlights local volunteerism and raises questions about how much community services should rely on private charity for early childhood support.
Each December Goodwill employees in Hazard dedicate their store to a holiday experience for LKLP Head Start preschoolers, and today the tradition returned with Santa visits, story time and staff purchased gifts. The event has grown over nearly a decade from simple milk and cookies to a full program that includes children sitting on Santa's lap and Mrs. Claus reading "The Night Before Christmas."
Paula Baker, store manager at Goodwill, described the evolution of the effort. "It actually just started with a couple of the employees handing out milk and cookies for the kids, and then it slowly progressed," she said. Staff said they spent the year saving spare change in a jar in the break room, and those small amounts added up. "We started just saving like our quarters, nickels, dimes, extra dollars we had and put it in a little jar in the break room and it accumulated this year to $500," Baker said.
Employees say they take as much pleasure from the event as the children do. "We enjoy it more than the kids do," Baker said. She added a broader motivation for the work, noting the simple ethic behind it. "Just to give more. You know, you never know what somebody’s going through from day to day and just be kind. Be nice to each other," Baker said.
Beyond the classroom holiday visit, Goodwill staff this year adopted a local family of four through LKLP, providing gifts, food and essentials for the Christmas week. Before the day ended the team had already started saving for next year, signaling continuity for a program embedded in the store culture.
The event offers immediate benefits for participating families and children, creating positive early childhood experiences and reinforcing local social networks. It also underscores the role of nonprofit and private sector generosity in filling needs that public programs may not cover. For policymakers and community leaders the Hazard tradition raises practical questions about sustaining early childhood services, supporting community action agencies like LKLP, and encouraging civic participation that complements formal supports.
As voters and civic institutions consider budget priorities and volunteer programs, the Hazard Goodwill example shows how grassroots initiatives provide tangible relief and community connection, while also reminding decision makers of the limits of relying solely on charity to meet basic family needs.
