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Holiday Happiness

a program of New Directions for people with disabilities, inc.
501(c)(3) non-profit corporation
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San Francisco Holiday Happiness

December 23
Get ready for a wonderfully cozy Christmas celebration with your New Directions family in the City by the Bay. The magnificent San Francisco Marriott Marquis is where we will call home for the next three evenings. Our hotel is located alongside a shopping Mecca: Virgin Megastore, Ross, Macy’s, Nike Store, Levi Store, Disney Store, Borders and more! Tonight we stroll through the Sony Metreon and then have a delicious dinner before settling into our luxurious hotel.

December 24
Happy Christmas Eve! Grab your mittens & scarves because we're off to Fisherman's Wharf for gift exchange shopping and a special private tour of the new Pier 39 Aquarium of the Bay. Later, we'll have dinner at the fabulous Jillian's Resturant. Snuggle up in bed early because "you know who is coming to town!" If we wish hard enough, maybe Santa will join us tomorrow morning.

December 25
Is he here yet? This morning, we will gather in the beautifully decorated Christmas suite, complete with a gorgeous tree, and mountains of presents. There will be lots of songs & fun! Maybe a jolly man in a red suit will come to visit. After this wonderful gift opening extravaganza & a delicious breakfast, we’ll head back to the wharf to board our chartered yacht for a fabulous dinner cruise. We'll dine & dance under the stars, aboard the Hornblower while enjoying the spectacular views of San Francisco Bay!

December 26
We can enjoy our beautiful five star hotel until we are ready to say goodbye. Before leaving, we will have a delicious breakfast before saying farewell to all of our newly found friends, do not forget to exchange addresses so we can all keep in touch.


Disneyland Holiday Happiness

December 19
Get ready for a wonderful holiday celebration in Anaheim, CA with your New Directions family. We’ll ride the comfortable Santa Barbara Airbus to Anaheim and check into the luxurious Anaheim Marriott. After lunch we can relax by the pool and explore our elegant hotel until it's time to get dressed for dinner. Did you remember to bring your dressy outfit? Tonight we're going to an elegant dinner dance in the Marriott ballroom where we can boogie the night away. After the party, we'll want to get a good night's sleep because tomorrow we're off to Disneyland!

December 20
Disneyland will be brimming with holiday decorations, including a huge, beautifully lit and decorated Christmas tree standing 50 feet tall at the entrance to Main Street. Are you up for the fast rides like Space Mountain, or do you enjoy the more leisurely rides like the Jungle Cruise or "It's a Small World"? Perhaps shopping is your desire? Disneyland has many shops containing a wide variety of souvenirs to fit anyone's taste. Snuggle up in bed early because "you know who is coming to town!" If we wish hard enough, maybe Santa will join us tomorrow morning.

December 21
Is he here yet? This morning, we will gather in the beautifully decorated Christmas suite, complete with a gorgeous tree and mountains of presents! After this wonderful gift-opening extravaganza, we're off to Disney's newest park, California Adventure for a day of non-stop fun. With a sprinkling of pixie dust and a smattering of gold dust, Disney Imagineers have captured the allure and beauty of Northern, Central and Southern California in a stunning new theme park. It consists of three fun-filled lands: Golden State, Hollywood Pictures Backlot and Paradise Pier

December 22
We can sleep in this morning and then it's off to our final holiday brunch together. We can exchange addresses with all our new friends so that we can stay in touch. We've had a Magical and Merry Holiday filled with memories to last a lifetime.

* Disneyland Holiday Happiness is sponsored by Carl W. Johnson Foundation

Holiday Happiness is a variety of not-for-profit, loving and fun-filled short vacation tours during the key holiday seasons of Christmas, Hanukkah and Thanksgiving for people with intellectual disabilities such as Down Syndrome, autism, and cerebral palsy, who cannot be with their own families at these important times of the year. Typically, participants cannot be with their own families because they are wards of the court or state due to abuse or neglect, they have been abandoned by their families, all family members have passed away, or their families are not capable of caring for their special needs.

Dee Duncan started with one Holiday Happiness program in 1985. She noticed that many of the care-facility residents were being left behind at the during the holidays, while their peers as well as staff were packing their bags for home. Dee decided to take those who had been “left behind” to Disneyland that year for Christmas.

Today, the program offers a home-style Christmas at Disneyland complete with deluxe hotel accommodations, gourmet meals, hand-decorated stockings filled to the brim, beautiful Christmas trees, visits from Santa, gifts galore, and dedicated staff and volunteers offering huge amounts of love and joy. This year New Directions will offer three large programs (25 to 30 participants each) at Christmas time, with additional programs offered at every major holiday.

New Directions for people with disabilities, inc. is a 501(c)(3) not for profit corporation

5276 Hollister Ave #207  Santa Barbara, CA  93111   (805) 967-2841

All donations are tax deductible. Federal Tax I.D. #77-0147768


Disneyland Holiday Happiness

December 19
Get ready for a wonderful holiday celebration in Anaheim, CA with your New Directions family. We’ll ride the comfortable Santa Barbara Airbus to Anaheim and check into the luxurious Anaheim Marriott. After lunch we can relax by the pool and explore our elegant hotel until it's time to get dressed for dinner. Did you remember to bring your dressy outfit? Tonight we're going to an elegant dinner dance in the Marriott ballroom where we can boogie the night away. After the party, we'll want to get a good night's sleep because tomorrow we're off to Disneyland!

December 20
Disneyland will be brimming with holiday decorations, including a huge, beautifully lit and decorated Christmas tree standing 50-feet tall at the entrance to Main Street. Are you up for the fast rides like Space Mountain, or do you enjoy the more leisurely rides like the Jungle Cruise or It's a Small World? Perhaps shopping is your desire? Disneyland has many shops containing a wide variety of souvenirs to fit anyone's taste. Snuggle up in bed early because "you know who is coming to town!" If we wish hard enough, maybe Santa will join us tomorrow morning.

December 21
Is he here yet? This morning, we will gather in the beautifully decorated Christmas suite, complete with a gorgeous tree and mountains of presents! After this wonderful gift-opening extravaganza, we're off to Disney's newest park, California Adventure, for a day of non-stop fun. With a sprinkling of pixie dust and a smattering of gold dust, Disney Imagineers have captured the allure and beauty of Northern, Central and Southern California in a stunning new theme park. It consists of three fun-filled lands: Golden State, Hollywood Pictures Backlot and Paradise Pier.

December 22
We can sleep in this morning, and then it's off to our final holiday brunch together. We can exchange addresses with all our new friends so that we can stay in touch. We've had a Magical and Merry Holiday filled with memories to last a lifetime.

* Disneyland Holiday Happiness is sponsored by Carl W. Johnson Foundation

Holiday Happiness

a program of New Directions for people with disabilities, inc.
501(c)(3) not for profit corporation

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"Joy is for everyone"