Sneakers, games, drones, clothes, and a variety of trendy toys all made the Secret Santa Wishlists that 5th graders at Birney Elementary School jotted down in class. The lists recently became wishes-come-true thanks to more than $3,000 in donations from Salesforce.

As the gifts piled up, the students’ mouths dropped open. Teachers and representatives from Salesforce watched as the excitement was unwrapped in the room. Students proudly showed off their new gifts to their friends. They cuddled new stuffed animals and held up their new board games. 

The 5th-grade teachers would not have been able to shop for the personalized gifts for 86 students in such a large capacity if it were not for the community’s support. It all started with a college friendship. Birney teacher Amber Heath attended college in the Atlanta University Center together at Spelman and Morehouse College with Brandon Douglas, Salesforce Regional Vice President.

For almost a decade, Ms. Heath has reached out to her family, friends, and colleagues to donate to her classroom so she can give personalized gifts to each of her students. Mr. Douglas has contributed to this effort personally in prior years and has leveraged his network to support in previous years as well.

This year, her friend recruited his colleagues at Salesforce to expand their impact beyond one class to include all five 5th-grade classes at Birney. Each student completed a “Secret Santa Wishlist,” where they indicated things that were at the top of their wishlist for the holiday season. 

Birney students were not the only ones who received gifts from the community. Kindergarteners at Bryant Elementary School received a visit from Santas in uniform.