Thanks to the Oasis Community Center and Century Villages at Cabrillo, 177 children in need will have a brighter Christmas.

The organization is hosting its third Adopt-a-Child program, in which children in need write out a wish list for items they need, like clothes, as well as items they want, like toys.

“The families participating in the Adopt-A-Child program include families living in shelter programs and low income housing with their children as well as individual veterans who are in the process of reconnecting with their children and grandchildren,” said Kimberly Crawford, Director of Community Development for Century Villages of Cabrillo, in an email. “Each child completed a wish list giving potential sponsors information to use for shopping such as clothing sizes, favorite colors, movies, books, etc.. as well as specific gifts they would like to receive for the holidays.”

The Oasis Community Center advertised the program through community events and associations that are attended by staff that work onside at the Villages at Cabrillo, Crawford said. Sponsors were assigned a child and given a copy of that child’s wish list. They were asked to commit to spending $50 per child.

The program has grown over the years, Crawford said, adding that 42 children were adopted in 2012 and 118 children were adopted last year.

“In 2014, a total of 86 (177 children) at CVC were helped,” Crawford said. “This includes the 63 families (122 children) that were adopted and the additional 23 families (55 children) that we worked with to get adopted by the Hope foundation’s Tree of Hope and Better Balance Long Beach. We’re still receiving donations and tracking donors but at this point we have gotten support from more than 50 individuals or groups.”

Sponsorship requests for this year’s Adopt-a-Child program have closed because all 177 children have been matched with sponsors, Crawford said.