One Way Every Day: November 14 - A Million Reasons to Believe!

"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist..."

It would seem that a bit of Santa's loving and generous spirit also resides in the staff and owners of Macy's Department Store. Macy's has a great opportunity for the young and the young at heart among us to make a difference! What a great opportunity to teach our children about giving back and helping others.

Macy's just kicked off their 3rd annual "Believe" campaign. The nostalgic campaign was inspired by the New York Sun's famous “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" editorial from 1897. Based on a letter to the editor of The New York Sun that was written by an 8-year old girl named Virginia O'Hanlon asking if Santa Claus existed.

As part of the "Believe" campaign, every Macy's store has a Believe Meter, letter-writing station and a mailbox to collect letters to Santa. Encourage your children write a letter to Santa, and then take the stamped, addressed letter to the store to mail it. Share with your child that for every letter collected, Macy's will contribute $1.00 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation®, up to one million dollars. Not only is your child writing their annual wish-filled letter to Santa, they are also helping other children have wishes granted.

The Make-A-Wish Foundation "grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy." The Make-A-Wish Foundation was founded in 1980 after a little boy named Chris Greicius realized his heartfelt wish to become a police officer. Since its humble beginnings, the organization has blossomed into a worldwide phenomenon, reaching more than 193,000 children around the world.

A network of nearly 25,000 volunteers enable the Make-A-Wish Foundation to serve children with life-threatening medical conditions. Volunteers serve as wish granters, fundraisers, special events assistants and in numerous other capacities.

This website is AWESOME... you will love it as much as your children. You can create, decorate and print out your letter to Santa to bring to Macy's. This is not just for the young... Santa welcomes letters from people of all ages. Isn't it time to believe again?

What else does Macy's have planned to celebrate this holiday season?

•The "Yes Virginia" animated TV special returns to CBS on Dec. 17th.
•"Yes Virginia" is available as a DVD and in book format at all Macy's stores. A portion of the proceeds benefit Make-A-Wish.
•The"Virginia" hot air balloon debuts in the Macy's Thanksgiving parade!
•Facebook fans can enjoy "The Believe Challenge" Frogger(R)-like online game, while raising additional funds for Make-A-Wish. Begins 11/17/10 on Macy's Facebook page.