Holliston Family’s Foundation Fulfills Needs, Fuels Dreams

By Lisa Gentes-Hunt

 One Holliston family is continuing its nearly two-decade-long tradition of making holiday wishes come true for local children in need this season. 

Jonathan Gerber and his wife Leslie Gerber, founders of the Holiday Dreams Foundation, along with their four children, are continuing to support children and families in need in the Metrowest and Hartford, Connecticut areas this year. 

“It’s Christmas cheer and holiday cheer,” Cofounder Jonathan Gerber stated in an interview. “My kids have grown up, the last 19 years, seeing clothes and toys everywhere…and understanding it’s for donations for those in need,” he noted of how the Gerber’s Holliston home is the hub for the Holiday Dreams Foundation’s collection project. 

Each year, his house fills with donations of gifts, toys, clothes, wrapping paper and supplies, as they prepare for the annual holiday drive. The founder said it has been a great way to teach his children and instill in his own family the importance of giving back to the community and helping those struggling. 

The Holliston residents have already begun the process of collecting toys, donations and volunteers to make the magic happen for the 2025 holiday season. 

Back in 2006, the Gerber family started their foundation and began partnering with one school to make the holiday magic for local children. They started by hosting a Christmas party and giving holiday gifts to about 20 children at the Woodrow Wilson School in Framingham, Mass. Now, the nonprofit helps make holiday wishes come true for an estimated 1,800 children across the Metrowest and Hartford, Connecticut region, Jonathan Gerber said.

“It’s all about the joy,” the cofounder said of helping children in need. 

Although Thanksgiving is not their core focus, Holiday Dreams does partner with the local Holliston Food Pantry to help provide gift cards to fund families in need of support for the Thanksgiving season, he noted. Typically, the organization provides 180 families with Thanksgiving essentials each year, he said. 

Supporting children and their families is the focus of the organization, which also includes fighting food insecurity during non-holiday months as well. 

“Needs are not just holiday needs,” Gerber said, noting that food insecurities for students include going to school hungry or not having access to meals when school is closed.

This past summer, the foundation brought smiles to a group of 30 local children with tickets to a Savannah Bananas game. He noted it was a way to lift their moods as dealing with financial and food insecurity is tough on children. 

Another way the Foundation assisted was during the COVID lockdown in 2020. The organization gathered volunteers, and paired up with local restaurants in order to deliver meals to 100 students in need from the Holliston community with daily meals since the school was shut down. That included breakfast, lunch and dinners through the closing of that school year, he said. 

“We are dedicated to supporting efforts to ensure future success for students in our hometown of Holliston,” the Gerbers state on their website. “We provide funding for testing and fun activities, snacks for children who come hungry to school, as well as emergency funding for life’s unexpected challenges.”

All requests for help from the Holiday Dreams are anonymous and can be directed to the Holliston Food Pantry or the local school’s guidance counselors, the founder noted. 

“We are a yes organization,” Gerber noted, adding that the only requirement for receiving support is that the child is 18 years of age or under; that the whole family, including siblings, are assisted as well; and that the family contacts their local school guidance counselor to be connected with the foundation. 

The school or local food pantry will connect with Holiday Dreams and ensure a wish list is created with the correct information and fulfilled in time for the holidays. He did encourage anyone in need to reach out to their schools now in order to get the process started–as the shopping and gifting can take some time. 

Those that would like to sponsor a child/family, make a monetary donation by cash, check, Venmo or credit card, or offer assistance can contact the Holiday Dreams Foundation in Holliston at: Sponsor a Child | General Donation — Holiday Dreams Foundation (https://holidaydreamsfoundation.com/donate) or by calling (781) 201-9004. 

For Holliston residents in need of assistance for Thanksgiving or the holiday and Christmas seasons, reach out to the Holliston Food Pantry at (508) 429-5392. 

For more information go to: Holiday Dreams Foundation (https://holidaydreamsfoundation.com).