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Chrysalis House Thanks Mrs. Claus
By Ginger McPhee
For The Grapevine‘s Season of Giving issue, we’d like to tell you about an amazing woman in our community who is most certainly deserving of some recognition for her great work. At Chrysalis House, Wendy Richardson is also known as Mrs. Claus. She lives in Greenwood, and she has been hosting a Christmas breakfast pajama party for the Chrysalis House Association every year for the past nine years. On December 7, she hosted her tenth fundraiser. Every year, she contacts the Chrysalis House Association to collect a wish list from the shelter, and she sends it out to all of her family and friends. She invites them to her party and asks them to bring gifts for us, not her. Our staff and board are invited to attend and they always have so many items to send back to the shelter, we have to bring a few larger vehicles. This year, incredibly, she also raised the money for the purchase of an automated external defibrillator (AED) for the shelter.
Each year, we gather in her home with her friends and family and share a meal. The house is decorated beautifully for Christmas, but most importantly the spirit of the season is alive in Wendy’s heart and home. Staff and board members talk about Chrysalis House and everyone shares stories, tears, and laughter. She not only collects much-needed items for the shelter, but also raises awareness in the community and leaves everyone feeling so great about the contribution they are making. Her generosity has inspired other women visiting the area to take the idea home to their own communities, so she is spreading this generosity far beyond our province as well. Wendy has a beautiful giving and positive spirit that makes us all so grateful to know her.
Thank you Wendy, for your many years of generosity and for showing all of us the true spirit of the season!
To learn more about Chrysalis House, and to make a donation, visit chrysalishouseassociation.org
