Anonymous Donors Play Santa For OKC Area Families

Two anonymous donors showed up Sunday at the Del City Wal-Mart offering to pay off layaway items for 10 families. Now those families are saying thank you for restoring their Christmas spirit.

Monday, December 19th 2011, 8:11 am

By: News 9


By Chris McKinnon, News 9

DEL CITY, Oklahoma -- Two anonymous donors showed up Sunday at the Del City Wal-Mart offering to pay off layaway items for 10 families. Now those families are saying thank you for restoring their Christmas spirit.

"My kids are now going to have their Christmas," Heather Fennell said.

Fennell is a single mother of two working hard to make ends meet every day. Her kids were going to have to put part of Christmas on hold until she scraped up enough money to buy gifts.

"They're not going to expect it because they're expecting it after Christmas," said Fennell. "They know that mom is having to struggle and having a hard time right now."

Anonymous donors arrived Sunday at the Wal-Mart on Sooner near Interstate 40 and offered to pay off 10 families' layaways. Employees at the Wal-Mart said it was a touching moment. They have seen family struggling to make ends meet through the recession.

"We just can't believe that these people are just willing to step up and give that," said assistant manager Annette Holt. "That one gentleman said, ‘My family is taken care of. Now I need to take care of other.'"

Holt and her co-workers said seeing the impact made them think about passing on the good deed this holiday season.

"That's the spirit of Christmas," Holt said. "That's Santa Claus. You know, that's what we need."

Wal-Mart has looked like Christmas for more than a month but Sunday evening it felt like Christmas morning as families got the news that a mystery donor paid off their debts.

"Whoever you are, thank you from the bottom of my heart. I mean, it means so much to me. It means a lot," Fennell said.

Employees at Wal-Mart said the donors did not want to be identified.

logo

Get The Daily Update!

Be among the first to get breaking news, weather, and general news updates from News on 6 delivered right to your inbox!

More Like This

December 19th, 2011

March 14th, 2024

December 4th, 2023

September 25th, 2023

Top Headlines

March 29th, 2024

March 29th, 2024

March 29th, 2024

March 29th, 2024