Several families in low-income housing complexes were provided with Christmas gifts Tuesday thanks to the support of local businesses. 

The event was organized by Helping One Person Excel (H.O.P.E.), a local nonprofit founded and owned by Stephanie Wilson, and took place at the Washington Housing Authority.  

“It’s always a blessing to give back. I do it for my heart because I didn’t have anyone to do it for me while I grew up,” said Wilson, who grew up in the projects of New York.  “My mother worked three jobs to make sure I had something so at the end of the day this comes from my heart.” 

Wilson, who founded H.O.P.E. last year, works with others in the community to provide for those in need throughout our area. The sponsors for Tuesday’s event included Wilson Cleaning, Boston Bail Bonding, Jackie Mercer and Carolina Avenue 76.

“At the end of the day, we don’t just help the children in our community, we try to help all in our community that’s in need, especially in the low income areas,” said Wilson. “We target mostly the inner-city, but when we talk about the inner city, we’re talking about the whole of Beaufort County. You can’t just exclude one part of the county.”