PRESCOTT – One of the best parts of Christmas is seeing others’ faces light up with joy, whether that’s when opening a gift, around a holiday goodie-laden dinner table or seeing Santa at an event. But what if you could do that for a family in need as well? Well, you can.

Prescott residents Curt and Alisa Schroeder have been partnering with Best Christmas Ever since November 2019. The nonprofit 501c3 organization, which provides a life-changing gift of $5,000 to a family in need through no fault of their own, is seeking nominations for a family in the Prescott area to surprise. The nomination deadline is Nov. 1.

“We need the community’s help to find this family,” Alisa Schroeder said. “Maybe their hardship is simply inflation (cost of living, daycare, groceries, etc.) or maybe it’s something more - either way we want to help.”

Curt first learned of the organization through 3M, where he works. He decided to participate with a coworker the first year. The second year, Alisa helped her husband and has ever since. They are captains of a BCE team that supports the Prescott community. Teams are scattered across the United States and Canada with about 100 captains in place.

“I’m the organizational skillset and he’s the hand shaker and phone call maker,” Alisa said. “We make a great team. With that being said, we have many friends, family and community supporters of our mission.”

The Schroeders have three young boys. They want their children to understand and be a part of giving back to the communities in which they live. They have helped four Prescott families so far and this year hope to make it five.

“Families are community-nominated,” Alisa said. “Nominations are done by someone’s family member, neighbor, family friend, grandparents, or even coworkers. Nominations officially open Sept. 1 and close Nov. 1.”

The deadline is strict, she added. Once nominations are closed, the Schroeders and their core team (which includes neighbors Amelia Hedberg and Lexi Bettis) read through the nominations within the 54021 zip code and choose the family they feel aligns with their mission best.

“Prescott is a small community and in the last four years we have yet to receive more than one to three nominations,” Alisa said. “We would love to find that family that works hard but maybe just doesn’t have money for the extras. The ones that are maybe silently struggling to get by. A lot of times these are the families that people don’t know may need a little extra help this holiday season.”

In 2019, the Schroeders surprised her husband’s best friend’s sister, who lives in Minneapolis. In 2020 they surprised one Prescott family, then two in 2021 and one in 2022. Alisa said it’s tough to put the “BCE drop” from 2022 into words. They surprised Brian and Jessica Gale and their five children. Brian was battling gioblastoma at the time. He died in May.

“Each BCE family is truly special to us, but this family WOW is completely adored by their community and it showed,” Alisa said. “They were actually nominated four different times by four different people which speaks volumes. Jess is a bright light and has given back to the Prescott community in so many ways. It felt truly special to surprise their family and surround them with a lot of people who love and care about them.”

BCE captains raise money year-round. The Schroeders’ biggest fundraiser is Garage Sale for a Cause during the 100-Mile Garage Sales in May.

“We have neighbors, family, and friends all donate items they are willing to part with and people pay whatever amount they would like for the items. All the money goes into our BCD fund,” Alisa said.

They also run fundraisers through Gertens, Cards for a Cause, Furlong Studios’ Craft Night at Ridgetop and Photos with Santa hosted by Nikki Ritter and Remax Advantage Plus. This year, a new fundraiser will take place: Yoga for a Cause at Bodhi Studios. The goal is to raise $5,000 to $10,000 per year.

“The biggest ask we have is always spreading the word about different fundraisers that we run all year long but really nominating a family is the biggest ask we have,” Alisa said.

Money is not given directly to families. BCE pays their bills directly for them if they need their utilities or rent paid.
“BCE directly cuts checks to the utility company and the landlord,” Alisa said. “This way the money cannot be abused.”

The BCE team also provides five to 10 gifts per family member. A lot of the gifts are needs the nominator provides in the application: Boots, clothes, toothbrushes, etc. Plus, the family is provided the Dave Ramsey Money Management course and a health and wellness course.

“If they complete the Dave Ramsey course they earn another $1,000 to use towards bills and if they complete the health and wellness course, they receive a $1,000 gift card to a local chain grocery store. The idea is to set the family up for future success. Christmas gifts are great but most families need more than just gifts,” Alisa said.

To learn more about the program, visit www.bcemovement.org To donate to the cause, go to www.bcemovement.org.kindful.com/2023-bce-families/Prescott-schroeder-bce To nominate a family in need, visit www.bcemovement.org/nominate-a-family-