Special Operations, Kenai
Christmas gifts near Kenai
The program everything else grew out of. Angel Tree tags and gifts for children across the central peninsula.
It started as sponsor money from snowmachine races, redirected to a few local families at Christmas. Thirty people that first year.
Kendall Auto Alaska's 12 Days of Caring gave 62 children a Christmas through this program.
A gift a child actually asked for, bought new, tagged and handed over at their own school.
Families near Kenai
We help families in Kenai and the areas around it. Operation Children First is based in Kenai and works through partner elementary schools in Kenai and Soldotna.
There are no names, no stories and no judgment. The school nurse keeps a list of what is needed, Operation Children First buys it new, and it is handed over quietly at school. A family is never asked to tell its story to qualify.
Money raised here stays here. In Matt Brown's words, donations raised in Soldotna stay in Soldotna, and contributions from the Kenai area go back into the Kenai area.
Questions people ask
What does Operation Children First do near Kenai?
The program everything else grew out of. Angel Tree tags and gifts for children across the central peninsula. Operation Children First is based in Kenai and works through partner elementary schools in Kenai and Soldotna.
How does a child near Kenai get help from Operation Children First?
Through the school. There are no names, no stories and no judgment. The school nurse keeps a list of what is needed, Operation Children First buys it new, and it is handed over quietly at school. A family is never asked to tell its story to qualify.
Does a gift from Kenai stay in Kenai?
Yes. Money raised here stays here. In Matt Brown's words, donations raised in Soldotna stay in Soldotna, and contributions from the Kenai area go back into the Kenai area. Nothing goes to a head office or another state.
How do I give to christmas gifts from Kenai?
Open the Support a child page, pick Venmo, PayPal or Cash App, and write Christmas in the note before you send. That one word is how the gift gets counted toward christmas gifts instead of the general pile.
Is Operation Children First a real nonprofit?
Yes. Operation Children First is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Kenai, Alaska, EIN 84-3299344, started by Matt Brown of Soldotna. It gets coats, socks, hygiene supplies, Thanksgiving meals and Christmas gifts to children on the central Kenai Peninsula through their own schools.
Support a child near Kenai
Write Christmas in the note so the gift counts toward christmas gifts.