Give A Christmas drive reaches goal for Bucks County Opportunity Council

Thanks to the generosity of Bucks County residents, and the sale of a 1969 Cadillac Coup D'ville, the Bucks County Opportunity Council and The Intelligencer reached a record-setting $200,000 in the Give A Christmas campaign.

Philanthropists Gene and Marlene Epstein promised they would donate $25,000 if other residents stepped up and helped the BCOC and Intell match last year's contributions of $175,000 again this year.

Well, the challenge worked.

"You guys hit the goal, so you get the $25,000," Gene Epstein said. "I'm really happy."

Car sold for a good cause

The Epsteins' Humanitarian Fund now has sold the classic Cadillac with only 13,500 miles on it and is donating the $25,000 to help Give A Christmas aid local residents in need of housing, food and other basic necessities.

Gene Epstein has collected classic and antique cars during his career in the automotive industry. The Epsteins now use the proceeds from selling them to help fund their charitable work.

First Commonwealth Bank also gave $25,000 as a match to donations made in November through its Share the Warmth campaign with Give A Christmas.

“We are very grateful to our many supporters for helping us to reach the goal this year. At a time when so many are struggling, you once again proved that this community comes together to help people in need. Thank you to our community,” said Erin Luckoss, CEO and executive director of the BCOC.

More: Give A Christmas: Requests for help up as Bucks County families continue to struggle

As of Monday morning, the drive collected $175,288, plus the Epsteins' $25,000 donation.

"We appreciate all the donors who helped this year and every year with the Give a Christmas campaign.  We are touched by both Gene and Marlene Epstein and First Commonwealth Bank who helped the campaign exceed its goal of $165,000," Lukoss said.

Epstein said the Bucks County Opportunity Council is one of the most worthwhile charities for helping those facing homelessness or housing crises. He said it does an "incredible amount of work getting people out of homelessness" and helping people with education and socialization skills so they can get jobs and "back to independent living."

The Intelligencer and Bucks County Courier Times sponsor and promote the annual Give A Christmas drive each year to help the BCOC and the Kiwanis Club of Levittown-Bristol. The BCOC drive collects funds from residents of Central and Upper Bucks County; the older Kiwanis drive, having started in 1958, helps those in Lower Bucks.

The Kiwanis-Courier Times drive has given out approximately 4,000 vouchers of $35 each to the children of families in need through its work with local schools as well as to others who are on fixed incomes. The vouchers can be used at area supermarkets and other stores that honor them.

The Kiwanis and Courier raised $104,857 in this year's campaign. It would have needed to reach last year's collection of $113,372 to receive the extra $25,000 from the Epstein fund.

Kiwanis fund organizer Mary Berman said despite not reaching that goal, the Kiwanis Club was grateful for all the support it did receive from residents in Lower Bucks County.

"It's been an economically tough year for many families, and they still contributed for others who had greater needs," she said.

Danielle Camilli, editor of the Courier Times and The Intelligencer, thanked readers and the community for their generous support again this season. Since they were started, the separate Give A Christmas funds have raised over $8 million in direct support for Bucks County residents, she said.

"We are incredibly grateful to continue to partner with the Kiwanis Club and the Opportunity Council. We believe in the work they both do all year long to help the most vulnerable in our communities," Camilli said. "Our readers again this year came through with their gernerous support and made a real and significant difference to thousands this holiday season. We thank all of them, the big donors and the small, for their contributions."

While the Give A Christmas drive is ending this month, both Lukoss and Berman are reminding residents to continue to support those who are struggling throughout the year.

"The donors really make a difference to all the families we serve both at Christmas time and throughout the year with these funds," Lukoss said.  "The donors are truly special."

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Give A Christmas reaches goal for Central and Upper Bucks County