In the fall of 2019, preschool teacher Michèle de Pencier had the idea of creating a holiday charitable giving program for the kids at her school. Similar to well-known initiatives like The Shoebox Project (which also generously supports Nellie’s), Michèle’s idea was for families to fill a decorative box with unwrapped gifts that someone in need might like to receive — but with this project, the focus was on kids gifting to other kids.
“The whole concept for me started with asking the question: How do we teach kids about empathy and giving back?” explains Michèle. “How do I get more kids to understand that although they live in their cozy bubbles, there are still kids out there who are living in crisis and in horrible situations?”
With the blessing of her school director, Michèle made a plan to invite families in their school community to create gift boxes which Michèle would then drop off at a shelter in time for the holidays. With a suggested total value of $25 to $35 per box, Michèle instructed families to fill each box with goodies such as mittens or socks, small toys like cars or action figures, baby supplies like wipes or onesies, stickers or crafts, and Wal-Mart or grocery store gift cards (for the moms). The response from the families at her school was immensely positive, and Joy in a Box was born.
“The parents loved it,” says Michèle. “They told me that it helped to start really interesting conversations at home, and provided them with a way to try to teach their young kids that there are other kids their age that live in this city and have a really difficult life.” That first year, her small school managed to make about 50 boxes for kids in need.
Despite some setbacks due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Michèle’s initiative has continued to grow — in 2022 she collected approximately 275 boxes which she distributed to five different shelters across Toronto, including Nellie’s. Michèle credits a lot of the growth to the connection she’s made with the Heaps Estrin real estate brokerage, who has helped to promote the project and now uses their two locations in Leaside and Rosedale as drop-off points for families who create gift boxes.
Having worked with young children for over 35 years and having three sons of her own, Michèle understands that kindness and empathy can be learned at a young age — you just have to find the right way to teach them. Joy in a Box is Michèle’s way of making this connection for young kids, teaching them in a simple and fun way about how they can help their peers in need. In the future, Michèle hopes to have the opportunity to partner with more schools and be able to connect with students directly.
“I’m excited to see how this can continue to grow, but I’m also so sad that my mom wasn’t here to see this,” explains Michèle. “She died in 2014, but she would have loved this. She just loved Christmas and she was a big part of how I came up with the concept and the name — her favourite perfume was called Joy de Jean Patou.”
Thank you, Michèle, and every family who has participated in the Joy in a Box project, for your tremendous support of Nellie’s. Your generosity and passion mean so much to the women and their children who need us.
