Lighting Up With Joy: Family-to-Family 2025

A little girl beams standing with her gifts from Family-to-Family. December 2024.

Family-to-Family for the Holidays is one of ECS’ most beloved traditions. Each year, people sign up to sponsor ECS families and help provide gifts for the holiday season. The holidays are a special time of year, and no child deserves to go without. In 2025, Family-to-Family will provide gifts for 383 neighbors from 88 families.

Family-to-Family requires the work of many ECS staff members, including Family Engagement Specialist Heidi Avent.

Since the Family-to-Family program first started, Heidi has been involved as a coordinator, working with family service technicians (FSTs), site supervisors, and home visitors to select families that would benefit from the program.

This year, the process has shifted so that staff who interact more closely with the families are leading the selection process, but Heidi is thrilled to continue to watch the program grow and bring Christmas magic to dozens of families. “It’s been a blessing,” she said.

ECS provides gifts for the entire family. December 2024.

Family-to-Family brings holiday magic to those in need. December 2024.

Heidi shared that Family-to-Family is “one of the main resources for our families for the holidays.” Without it, the holidays would be a far more difficult time.

Family-to-Family would not be possible without the sponsors who volunteer to provide gifts for ECS families. Heidi expressed her appreciation for the sponsors. “The donations that the donors give to the families – it’s amazing, my mouth drops. They take the time to get what the families requested and make the families feel special this time of year,” she said. “I’m so thankful to know there are actually people out there who care and take the time to care for our families.”

Carly Montagne, CFO at Torrey Pines Landscape Company, has been a Family-to-Family sponsor for three years. The first year, she signed up as an individual, and after that she sponsored with her colleagues at Torrey Pines Landscape Company. “Everyone gets so excited, it makes everybody feel super in the Christmas spirit since they’re doing something for someone,” she said.

A mother and child smile with their gifts. December 2024.

An Episcopalian and member of St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, Carly has volunteered with her parish in many ways over the years. When she saw the sign up for Family-to-Family in the Diocese newsletter, she decided to try a new way of giving back and sponsor a family.

Carly recalled her first trip delivering gifts to her sponsored family. “The mom was crying the entire time, ‘this is all for us? I can’t believe it.’ I was in tears the whole drive home,” she said.

Carly showcases neighborly love and holiday spirit by going above and beyond with her sponsor duties. The first year she sponsored, she volunteered to take on an additional family who had no sponsor match. This year, she asked ECS again about any unmatched families, and through her family, friends, and colleagues, Carly found matches for six additional families.

“Anything we can do to support and give back is one of the most important things we can do,” she said. “That’s what Jesus would want, he said ‘give them the shirt off your back,’ so how can I do less?”

This year, ECS is inviting all of its community members to reflect on how they light the season with love. Carly shared that “to me, it means there is no Christmas without love... love should light our lives and our decisions; the world would be a much better place.”

Family-to-Family sponsors are touching hearts and lives through their generosity, lighting up the season for children excited to receive gifts, and even more for parents who get to see joy on their children’s faces.

“You just see the joy and appreciation in their faces, that ECS is able to help them. It’s helped so many families in our community,” Heidi shared. “It’s a season of hope; they’re giving hope to our families.”

To learn more ways you can give hope to ECS families, students, and clients, visit https://www.ecscalifornia.org/ways-to-give.

Sponsoring a family creates real impact and lasting memories. December 2024.

Family-to-Family creates hope and happiness for dozens of families each year. December 2024.

The Gift of Music: Kodály Music Program

The Kodály Music Program gives students an early introduction to the arts. September 2025.

As part of an effort to expand arts education for our littlest learners, ECS launched a Kodály (pronounced code-I) music pilot program at ECS San Ysidro Head Start. Kodály music lessons began last month and will include 14 weekly lessons throughout the semester, wrapping the year with an “in-formance” where families and caregivers will be invited to join their students in singing and moving together. ECS is one of only a few programs in San Diego to offer these specialized music lessons and it is the only program of its kind in the South Bay region.  

A Kodály-qualified instructor engages students in listening and singing along to songs. August 2025.

This initiative would not be possible without donor support and the partnership of the San Diego Children’s Choir. The Kodály program was generously funded by an anonymous music lover who seeks to introduce the love of music to the next generation of students. Their gift provides supplies, materials, and operational expenses to launch this first-of-its-kind program and open up a world of musical expression for our students. The San Diego Children’s Choir provided the Kodály trained instructor.

The Kodály music education method originated in Hungary in the mid-twentieth century. It approaches music education in accordance with a child’s current developmental stage. The first introduction to music is through listening, singing, and movement. Teaching points include rhythm syllables, rhythm sequence and notation, and melodic sequence among other topics designed to build a fundamental understanding of music. 

Although these lessons sound complex, the Kodály method uses simple tactics such as singing games, fun and play, and visual, auditory, and kinesthetic elements to fuse enjoyment with key learning milestones.  

Students learn the foundations of musical creation and rhythm through movement. August 2025.

The arts are an essential part of a well-rounded education. Research shows a direct correlation between artistic learning and early academic and social-emotional success. However, inequalities in accessibility to arts education are still largely prevalent for students living in lower socioeconomic status areas. A child’s education and development should not be limited by their zip code. ECS aims to break these barriers and provide early access to the arts to ECS students. Through initiatives like the Kodály music program, students will receive the resources and experiences required to meet their emotional, social, and psychological needs. This program will impact over 40 children and their families enrolled at ECS San Ysidro Head Start.  

By ensuring that ECS students are engaging in the arts, ECS is setting them up for success as they transition to kindergarten and beyond, building a stronger and happier new generation of San Diegans. 

To learn more about ECS’ early childhood education programs visit www.ecsheadstart.org. 

Support from Partner Rummage Sales

ECS’ Director of Development Tim Whipple on the St. Dunstan’s runway shows off rummage items. September 2025.

Thank you to St. Dunstan's - San Diego's Rummage Sale and St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church in La Jolla's White Elephant Sale for supporting ECS programs like Uptown Safe Haven. Their grants help us provide essentials like linens and towels, making our residents feel at home. This year, our Director of Development, Tim, even hit the runway at St. Dunstan’s fashion show such a fun way to celebrate community and generosity.

Thank You for Creating Memories with Family-to-Family 2024!

This Christmas Eve, the spirit of giving shines bright at ECS. Through our Family-to-Family for the Holidays program, 84 families and 365 individuals experienced even more joy this season.

Thank you, Angel Ibarra, Associate Director of Strategic Partnerships & Government Affairs, for your leadership, and to our incredible Head Start, Para Las Familias, Central East Regional Recovery Center, and ACCORD staff for partnering with him to bring this meaningful program to life for ECS families.

We are also deeply grateful to the parish communities of St. Paul’s Cathedral and St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church, along with an individual donor, whose generous contributions made it possible to provide gifts for clients at Uptown and C-HRT Safe Havens, spreading holiday cheer even further.

To each of our incredible donors, your generosity has turned holiday wishes into reality for so many. You’ve truly made this season memorable!

Thank you to everyone who participated in Family-to-Family this year. December 2024.

Family-to-Family sponsors help create lasting memories for ECS children. December 2024.