Angels, you never cease to amaze me. Your compassion and generosity warm my heart. Even in difficult times, when many of us are struggling to make ends meet, you still find ways to help others.
Once again you have made this Valley a better place to live with your donations of nearly $122,500 of goods, gift cards and money to Lehigh Valley nonprofit organizations participating in The Morning Call’s 26th annual Be an Angel campaign.
When we kicked off the campaign in November, I was worried it would not be as successful as it has been in the past. I felt a little guilty asking readers to make donations to nonprofit agencies at a time when affordability in this country is a huge issue. A recent Franklin and Marshall College poll of Pennsylvania voters found that economic concerns, including unemployment, housing costs, real estate taxes and higher utility pricing, are actually increasing. And let’s not forget the sticker shock we experience at the grocery store and gas pumps.
I suspected that as much as they’d like to help, many people cannot afford to. They are trying to stretch their finances to provide for their own families.
Yet I hoped for the best. As we do early each fall, we solicited wish lists from area nonprofits of three items they needed most to better serve their clients. We published their lists in late November and asked you to earn your angel wings by fulfilling one or more of their wishes during the campaign, which continued through Jan. 31.
We are fortunate to live in an area with an impressive network of nonprofit agencies. These are organizations that feed and provide shelter for our fellow human beings and our animals; that provide aid to the sick, from infants to the elderly; that educate and protect our children; and that comfort and support our seniors.
These are the organizations that strive to make our world a better place to live. Their goals are admirable and their wishes are not frivolous. They are essential and often life-sustaining. But their operating costs have risen, too, and many of them hope for and often rely on donations to better serve their constituents.
This need was the inspiration for The Morning Call’s Be an Angel campaign when it was established 26 years ago. Our goal was to connect nonprofits organizations in need with those who want to help.
I was right to worry. Donations were indeed down this year — substantially. And understandably so. Last year’s campaign yielded nearly $275,000 worth of tangible goods.
Initially, I was dismayed when I saw the results. But as I started reading over donation reports and seeing the impact of those donations, I realized my problem was in the way I was defining success. I was reminded of something former first lady Michelle Obama is credited with saying: “Success isn’t about how much money you make. It’s about the difference you make in people’s lives.”
The $122,500 donated this year made quite a positive impact on both people and animals here in the Lehigh Valley.
For homeless men entering the Allentown Rescue Mission seeking shelter and a fresh start, donations of thousands of dollars worth of clothing to replace apparel tattered by life on the streets is a godsend. For people living in encampments, donations of sleeping bags, blankets and warm clothing are vital to survival, especially during an extremely cold winter like we’ve just experienced. And to thousands of animals living in shelters and rescues, donations of food and supplies are literally lifesaving.
Be an Angel has impacted hundreds of thousands of lives since its inception in 1999. The campaign has yielded more than $6.3 million in donations for our community from our community. And that number doesn’t include the nearly impossible-to-calculate value of angels who volunteer their time and talents to worthy causes. Volunteers are literally priceless as well as essential to the operation of many nonprofits.
“The Morning Call is proud to run the Be an Angel campaign, which has raised millions of dollars for Lehigh Valley area nonprofits over the years, and the 2025 campaign was no exception,” Morning Call editor John Misinco said. “We thank our loyal readers and the community for their continued support and generosity,”
The organization that perhaps benefits most from volunteerism is Cops ‘n’ Kids Children’s Literacy Program, established by retired teacher Beverly Bradley in 2003 as a way to connect children with the community through literacy. Lehigh Valley businesses and individuals, including children from grade school through college, donate money or collect and donate books to the organization. Those books are then distributed to children across the Valley at special events promoting literacy. Volunteers, including adults and children from area grade schools, middle schools, high schools and colleges, collect, sort and distribute books at Cops ‘n’ Kids Bethlehem reading room and other events throughout the Valley. Not a single person who works with the organization gets paid.
A playhouse donated to Cops ‘n’ Kids through the Bethlehem Police Department via the Be an Angel campaign was placed at Marvine Elementary School in Bethlehem. Principal Julissa Jimenez, right, and Community School Coordinator Luis Vasquez try it out for size. The same donation, made be an angel who wished to remain anonymous, included two other playhouses and two toy John Deere riding tractors that will be placed at other facilities for youth. (Courtesy Beverly Bradley)
Bradley said Cops ‘n’ Kids distributed more than 35,000 free books to nearly 15,000 individuals in 2025. Since its inception, it has put 1,283,180 free books into the hands of Lehigh Valley children.
Bradley realizes how lucky Cops ‘n’ Kids is to receive thousands of dollars worth of donations.
“We feel fortunate to live in a community of so many caring individuals … and your Be an Angel initiative has brought out the best in us,” she said.
Among its biggest donors were children, who play a large role in both book donation and distribution — a beautiful example of children learning to give back.
Students in the Bethlehem Catholic High School Peer Listeners held a book fair in early December at Barnes and Noble that raised nearly $13,000 worth of books for Cops ‘n’ Kids, along with a gift card for nearly $2,000 to buy books for Bethlehem’s Holy Infancy School.
At another book fair at Barnes and Noble the previous day, Bethlehem’s Liberty High School Cops ‘n’ Kids Club raised nearly $11,000 worth of books plus a gift card for $1,600 to buy books for Lincoln Elementary School in Bethlehem.
And donations to Cops ‘n’ Kids extended beyond books to other items that make life a little better for children, particularly for those at risk, including games, puzzles, toys, and scarves, hats and mittens to keep them warm.
Through the Bethlehem Police Department, an anonymous angel donated two toy riding John Deere tractors valued at $250 each and three children’s playhouses worth $119 each. And longtime volunteer Marlene Lakey of Bethlehem made and distributed more than 1,000 headbands and scarves for elementary school children.
Although Cops ‘n’ Kids was top recipient of donations in this year’s Be an Angel campaign, receiving nearly $57,000 of tangible goods, it, too, experienced a drop in donations, which usually exceed $100,000.
“l can definitely tell people are struggling,” Bradley said. “Although this has been a most challenging year for people throughout our community and throughout the nation, we continue to see the goodness and thoughtfulness and willingness to have a positive impact on our community’s children — and, in turn, the future of our community.”
Agencies aiding the homeless had a particularly tough task this winter trying to place clients in shelters or find other ways to keep them warm.
Thirty-five angels answered Allentown Rescue Mission’s call for clothing and accessories. The agency’s mission is to rescue, rehabilitate and restore homeless men by providing emergency assistance, faith-based life-skills classes and a workforce reentry program. Each man entering the program is given much-needed clean clothing. According to Stephanie Appel of the Rescue Mission, it doesn’t take long for the stockpile of supplies — this year valued at nearly $6,000 — to be depleted as it is distributed to men entering the mission and hoping to get a fresh start.
Also among those receiving much-needed help was New Bethany in Bethlehem, which offers hope and support to people who experience poverty, food insecurity and homelessness. Thirteen angels donated blankets, sleeping bags, gloves, coats and toiletries.
Family Promise of Lehigh Valley in Allentown, which provides food and shelter to children and families experiencing homelessness, received 10 twin air mattresses and 10 portable cribs from Hovus Inc., a Bethlehem company that visits the wish list each year and makes multiple donations. In addition, Family Promise received a monetary donation from Scott and Edie Stahlnecker, also regular donors.
Tiffany Whitney, right, of the Gracedale Nursing Home volunteer department, introduces resident Sandra Marsh and her “dog” Oscar (blue collar) to one of six new robotic dogs and nine robotic cats donated to the Nazareth home by Hovus Inc. in Bethlehem during The Morning Call’s Be an Angel campaign. Residents who owned pets before moving into Gracedale are especially comforted by the lifelike companions. (Courtesy of Gracedale)
Hovus and the Stahlneckers also were on the list of angels that donated to Animal Food Bank of Lehigh Valley in Emmaus, which supplies pet food to families in economic need to help keep pets at home. Year after year, repeat angels like them make this campaign a success. I’m always grateful to see their names, along with so many others, including Allentown law firm Fitzpatrick, Lentz & Bubba, William Jesse of Allentown, Dennit and Donna Golden of Pen Argyl, Cindy and Tim Talabe of Coopersburg, Bob and Carol Sparks of Slatington, and Robert and Joan Kern.
Nonprofits caring for dogs, cats and a variety of other animals tend to tug on angels’ heartstrings. Animals in Distress near Coopersburg received 11 donations of money, pet food, pet supplies and cleaning products. Money will help pay for vet bills and other medical expenses for its four-legged residents.
Tails of Valor, Paws of Honor near Coopersburg provides assistance to dogs for veterans, police and first responders suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries and physical disabilities. It received 10 donations of money and gift cards to be used at grocery or pet stores. Horses Healing Heroes Lehigh Valley in Allentown, which provides mental health support to local veterans, first responders and their families through equine therapy, received monetary gifts from five angels.
Among other animal agencies that attracted multiple donations are Friends of the Bethlehem Mounted Police, which received money and gift cards from seven angels, and Peaceable Kingdom in Whitehall, which received gifts cards and money from eight angels. Forgotten Felines and Fidos in Germansville received five monetary donations and Manor Burro Donkey Sanctuary in Danielsville received six gifts of money. Center for Animal Health and Welfare, which cares for stray, unwanted and abandoned animals, received a much-needed, new commercial-grade washer valued at $2,700. It will be used in the facility’s main dog kennel, where four to six large loads of towels and bedding are washed each day.
Agencies in the youth and health care categories also are favorites among angels. In fact, nonprofits serving children historically have done very well in the Be an Angel campaign. However, the ailing economy brought several disappointing surprises this year. The Boys & Girls Club of Allentown, for example, usually has most, if not all, of its wishes fulfilled each year. In past years, angels have provided board games and money for holiday camp scholarships to keep at-risk children off the streets during the winter school break. This year, they hoped for donations of board games again along with gift cards and wired headsets for youth to use on laptops for educational programming. Unfortunately, the club received no donations. And, sadly, it was just one of dozens of nonprofits that came up short.
However, the Krysta Hankee Memorial Fund continued to be well supported this year with more than $11,000 in monetary donations from 28 angels. The money will be used to buy gas and groceries by families experiencing financial burdens while dealing with a health crisis. The fund was established in 2007 by Bill and Chris Hankee of Germansville, who experienced firsthand the chaos and financial burden of dealing with a health crisis away from home. While she was living in New York, their then-22-year-old daughter Krysta went into cardiac arrest and died a few days later.
Gracedale Nursing Home in Nazareth, a skilled nursing facility providing long-term care and short-term rehabilitation, received nine robotic cats and six robotic dogs from repeat donor Hovus, five portable DVD players from George Frack of DannyKay Property and five Walmart gift cards from Anita Decker of Emmaus, who donates to Gracedale each year.
Jennie Repsher, Gracedale’s volunteer coordinator, said the robotic animals with lifelike movement — valued at nearly $2,500 for all 15 — are given mostly to memory-care residents to provide comfort. “It brings back memories and makes those who had pets prior to living at Gracedale feel like they are cuddling with a real dog or cat,” Repsher said.
Pediatric Cancer Foundation of Lehigh Valley, which provides services to local families who have a child with pediatric cancer, received toys, money and gift cards from nine angels. Eight angels gifted Dream Come True, which strives to fulfill the dreams of Lehigh Valley children who are seriously, chronically or terminally ill, with postage stamps, gift cards and money. Camelot for Children in Allentown, a gathering place for fun and friendship for children with disabilities and other medical challenges, and Baseball for Special People in Quakertown, a baseball program for mentally and physically challenged individuals, also gathered multiple donations.
Financially, it may not have been the best year for the Be an Angel campaign, but it accomplished a great deal. We extend a special thank you to all of the angels who stretched their dollars further this year to help others in need. You made a positive impact on our community.
“We are living proof that your Be an Angel campaign helps to bring out the best in individuals of all ages, which is especially important in the most troubling of times,” said Bradley of Cops ‘n’ Kids. “Encouraging our community to help others is empowering and enables individuals to realize that we can all make a difference in the world in which we live.”
Thank you, Ann Lowy
Morning Call data assistant Ann Lowy, who collected wish lists and donation reports for this campaign for several years, has retired. She took over the operational aspects when I retired in 2013. We are so grateful to her for keeping the campaign going.
“Ann has been our angel, ensuring the Be an Angel program runs flawlessly. There is so much work that goes on behind the scenes to make it happen, and Ann made it all look so easy,” Misinco said. “We will truly miss her and thank her for her contributions to this vital community service.”
Readers, we want to assure you that the Be an Angel will continue. Agencies, please watch your email in September for a notice to send in your wish lists. And angels, watch for the kickoff for the 27th campaign in November. Hopefully, we’ll be experiencing better times.
Irene Kraft is a freelance writer and former Morning Call editor who started the Be an Angel campaign in 1999.