By Staci DaSilva
sdasilva@kcautv.com
You don't have to be Saint Nick himself to bring the Christmas spirit to Sioux City.
For the fourth year now, Mission of the Messiah, Trinity Lutheran Church, and Midtown Family Community Center teamed up to bring a real Christmas dinner to area families in need.
The meal has grown every year, and this year it expanded to 3 separate dinners Sunday afternoon.
The families were referred and invited by the Midtown Family Community Center.
"To a lot of them, this means the difference between celebrating Christmas and not celebrating Christmas. We have a lot of families that paying the rent is a lot more important than buying Christmas gifts," said Midtown's Janet Reynolds.
"The food is homemade, cooked by members of our own church. And we have one professional cook who used to work as a caterer at Aggie's," said Trinity Lutheran Pastor Paul Johnston.
And the big guy in red showed up to the Trinity Lutheran Church to drop off some early Christmas presents.
Kids and parents alike were so grateful for the experience.
Jenny Owings of South Sioux City, NE said, "I'm a single mother, got 2 kids. Sounded like a good idea to get out there and celebrate the holidays."
Jessica Seibold of Sioux City said, "It means a lot. We got 6 kids, and it's not always easy."
The Christmas dinner and gifts are funded by the Mission of the Messiah and donations from Trinity Lutheran Church members throughout the year.
