Adopt-A-Family is a highly anticipated event in the Fossil Ridge High School community throughout both students and staff. Fossil and Rocky Mountain High School team up with Serve 6.8 and host this event every year in December, prior to winter break. 

Serve 6.8 is a nonprofit based in Northern Colorado, the organization who we get connected with to provide the families for us to “adopt.” This concept becomes a reality by first having school counselors refer families to the Adopt-A-Family sign up at the Serve 6.8 resource center. Families then sign up and submit a gift wish list, the families are then matched to a provider like Fossil, Rocky, or Timberline Church. 

Student Council takes on the most responsibility with this event, planning, organizing, contacting, and setting up for it all to take place. Each advisory class is assigned a family that they will be “adopting” that year, and then sent information on the family consisting of their names, ages, and their wish list—consisting of things like snow boots, books, toy sets, and more.

The students in the class divide and conquer, all pitching in to buy each family member Christmas gifts that they otherwise could not have afforded. Once classmates have acquired all the gifts they are contributing, each advisory class will plan a wrapping party. This is a whole class period dedicated to wrapping gifts, writing letters, and sending the class’ final contributions down to the gym to get organized. They are then prepared to be given to the families later that night. StuCo then also takes the responsibility of purchasing filler gifts in case some families did not get enough. 

Contrary to other advisory class activities, Adopt-A-Family is a popular and widely participated in event at Fossil. Going on my fourth year of participating and contributing to the event, I have noticed students almost always tend to step up and get involved, so that their class provides all the gifts they can plus some, granting the wishes of their adopted family. I think it is so widely loved in our school because it gives students and staff an opportunity to directly better our community and get involved with something bigger than our physical advisory class—which we often feel confined to and fall into a repetitive routine. The wrapping day does an amazing job of unifying the advisory class as we snack on holiday sweets while preparing our presents that we are so eager to gift the families with.

This event ensures that the low income families in our community enjoy the holidays and all of the pressure and expenses are relieved from them, providing the children and parents a Christmas experience they deserve. Makenzie Lee, a four year StuCo member, contributes her favorite parts about the Adopt-A-Family event, “Watching families receive the gifts and the gratitude they have for being provided with the things they couldn’t afford is the most rewarding part of the event.” 

There are many more opportunities for one to get involved even further with Adopt-A-Family this year, whether it be within Fossil or even bigger. Consider hosting a giving tree in your business, individually sponsoring a family, joining the Serve 6.8 team, or simply donating financially or through gifts. There are several ways to get connected with this compassionate charity. Do not forget the gift of giving this coming holiday season—participate in Adopt -A-Family.