The first purpose of the Angel Tree was to make sure that all of the kids in the Billings area group homes had a Christmas. “The kids are away from their families and being able to give them a little extra love in this time is important,” Shirley Bulluck, Intake Coordinator, explains.
The tree has since expanded to include kids in foster care and in substance abuse services. The youth who have participated over the past three years have been nothing but appreciative and excited.
“Employees are limited with what we can do but we are involved intimately in these kids lives,” says Shirley. This tension is what lead Shirley and another colleague from the finance department to start the Angel Tree three years ago.
Shirley Bulluck and Taylor Barth hard at work decorating the Angel Tree.
How it Works
Each youth fills out a questionnaire that asks them about their hobbies, favorite teams, favorite games, and other interests. The youth is assigned a number and placed on the Angel Tree to be adopted by a community member or Youth Dynamics employee. There is a $50 maximum on each child so that all the children receive the same. Angel tree gifts are collected in the Administrative Services Office and will be distributed on December 19th.
How to Help
At the time of publishing this post, there are no more angels left on the Angel Tree. However, Youth Dynamics has nearly 60 children in our therapeutic group homes in Boulder, Bozeman and Helena. Our staff has been working hard to gather community donations so we can give the children in our homes a special holiday. Anyone who is interested in providing a Christmas to other youth the state can make a cash donation, or contact us to be put in contact with the nearest Youth Dynamics therapeutic group home.
