{"id":2512,"date":"2013-12-24T14:04:00","date_gmt":"2013-12-24T18:04:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/christmasclassics.com\/christmasmusic\/?p=2512"},"modified":"2013-12-24T14:04:00","modified_gmt":"2013-12-24T18:04:00","slug":"christmas-eve-2013-time-thank-fisher-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/christmasclassics.com\/christmasmusic\/christmas-eve-2013-time-thank-fisher-house","title":{"rendered":"Christmas Eve 2013: Gratitude and Fisher House"},"content":{"rendered":"

Today is Christmas Eve, a much anticipated day on the Christian calendar that serves as a prelude to the birth of our savior Jesus Christ. For many of us it a day of evening worship at our parish church and a time to reflect on the meaningful story of Christmas so richly illuminated by the Gospel of St. Luke<\/i>.<\/p>\n

For me personally Christmas Eve floods me with childhood memories about going to midnight Mass and hearing a choir of nuns sing carols so beautifully that their notes seemed to spiral heavenward as though on the wings of angels. That warm and intoxicating experience has often been rekindled each Christmas Eve, especially today when I took time from doing last minute Christmas shopping to re-read several e-mails I recently received from Fisher House managers from across the country regarding the donations of Best-Loved Christmas Carols<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/strong> and American Christmas Classics<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/span>, my two best-selling, highly illustrated Christmas music collections<\/p>\n

Two of those e-mails were particularly poignant. Heather Frantz from the Fisher House of Pittsburgh wrote:\u00a0 I just wanted to let you know that we handed out your boxed collections to our guests this past Wednesday at our Christmas Party and they absolutely LOVED them!!!!!! We had several wives who were so touched by the gift that they teared up and they all opened them and couldn\u2019t believe how amazing the book was and all of the stories and history behind the songs that they all love so much. Thank you so very much for providing such a joyous gift for our guests!!! Merry Christmas to you!<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

The second response came from Kristin Palmer, Fisher House of San Diego.\u00a0 I just wanted to follow up with you and let you know we received and have been distributing your Christmas collections to our families. I can tell you personally each family I have talked to is touched and awed by your generosity. The holiday season on a good day can be stressful enough, but to have to also deal with a loved one in a medical crisis compounds that stress. I gave the CDs to a mother whose 18 year old Marine is receiving cancer treatments. She was very moved, and thankful. Fortunately in her case she will be able to bring her son home for the holidays, and she said they would be listening to them and letting everyone they know about the generosity of the Fisher House and those that support it. For the rest of the families that will have to remain here for the holidays, at least they will have a little Christmas spirit and know someone was thinking of them during the holidays.\u00a0 Again, thank you and God bless!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

The sentiments conveyed by Fisher House military families are similar to the feelings I had when the Knights of Columbus, SKF Industries, Villanova University students, and others annually feted us at St. John\u2019s Orphanage in Philadelphia during the Christmas holidays. I fondly remember, along with hundreds of other orphan boys, the warm afterglow of being a starry-eyed recipient of carefully wrapped Christmas presents that were more precious than gold.<\/p>\n

To hear that the joy of my Christmas days of yore has been replicated and found expression in the hearts of Fisher House military families truly humbles me.\u00a0 As it should for one who has benefited much from the Christmas spirit.<\/p>\n

Merry Christmas!<\/p>\n

\""Christmas<\/a>

“Christmas Prayers”
– AMERICAN CHRISTMAS CLASSICS<\/p><\/div>\n