FORT MYERS, Fla. — Students at Florida Gulf Coast University are transforming a classroom assignment into a meaningful holiday tradition, one that brings comfort, joy, and a sense of dignity to teen girls at the Pace Center for Girls.
Senior Reporter Emily Young gets a look at the Christmas trees on display:
To make the season brighter, FGCU social entrepreneurship students collected 11 donated Christmas trees before placing them in partnering businesses across Southwest Florida.
Each ornament on the trees were designed by a Pace Center student and includes a holiday wish list item on the back. Community members can select an ornament and donate a gift, directly benefiting girls who may otherwise go without.
The Pace Center for Girls is a day program that supports students dealing with significant challenges, including mental-health struggles, unstable home situations, and financial hardship.
Amy McQuadde, Board Chair of the Pace Center for Girls, said the project gives the teens something many of them have never experienced during the holidays, which is hope and the chance to give back to their own families.
“A lot of these girls come from homes where food may not be plentiful," said McQuadde. "The luxuries of life, hygiene products, some girls don’t have those things. This gives them the opportunity to feel like they can contribute back to their family at the holidays where they might not be able to do that.”
Suggested donations include makeup, fuzzy slippers, gift cards, hygiene products, and other items a teen girl would enjoy.
FGCU senior Raize Kloss, who helped coordinate the project, said the experience proves that anyone can make a meaningful difference.
“It feels really nice to know that a group of college students can get together and make such a big impact,” Kloss said. “It shows that you don’t have to be a certain age or have a certain job title to help people around you.”
The donation drive runs through the Christmas season, but organizers said the biggest push wraps up on Friday. Community members can visit participating businesses to pick up an ornament and support girls in need this holiday season.
Here is a full list of locations where donation trees have been placed:
