Let me just tell you what amazing people were sitting at my table! When I told them how I’d like to spend my $5, towards a child in my 5th grade class whose family is struggling, they all graciously gave over their money as well.

Isaac is a brilliant young man who’s had a very hard life. He has a condition which has required more than 30 surgeries throughout his short life. The most obvious of those is his lack of thumbs. He had several surgeries to create thumbs out of his index fingers, which sometimes makes everyday activities a bit more challenging. Due to the lagging economy, times have been excessively traumatic for his family lately. All of this has taken a huge toll on him this year.

Isaac loves to dance more than anything else. So, I thought and iPod would be the perfect gift for him. Our total winnings of $50 would have been plenty to buy one! My friend Penny, though, mentioned that she just happened to have a new iPod she didn’t need. She donated that to our gift bag, along with new headphones. I spent the winnings on a docking station so that he could charge his iPod and crank up the music when he had the urge. My daughter donated a protective cover, and my son downloaded all of his favorite music onto the iPod for Isaac.  I kept him out of P..E. today for a few minutes to let him unwrap his gifts. He said it was something that he’s always wanted, but knew that his family couldn’t afford. He said that this gift was, for him, a Christmas miracle.