A commitment to Christian service is at the core of the mission of Malvern Prep. That commitment was evident this past weekend, as the School held a Christmas party for families under the care of Best Nest, a Philadelphia organization that supports the medical, physical and emotional needs of children affected by HIV.
Malvern hosted more than 300 guests, including 127 children, and more than 150 Malvern students, faculty, parents, students and alumni were joined by 40 girls from Notre Dame Academy to make the party a great success.
"What a fantasic day! The Best Nest children, parents and staff love coming here, and each year they cannot believe the Malvern family is so kind to them," said Christian Service Director Larry Legner. "A number of children love Malvern so much they want to come here for school. That is a huge compliment to all involved, especially our boys. I love watching the boys interact with these little children. Many of our moms were in tears just watching our boys interact with the little ones."
The Best Nest families were treated to games, supervised activities and free time in the pool, face painting, rides around campus in one of two fire engines compliments of the Newtown Square and Norriton Fire Companies, and a hearty lunch. The highlight of the afternoon was when Santa and his elves appeared on the stage of the Duffy
Center, on the set of
Miracle on 34th Street, to play with the children and distribute Christmas stockings filled with gifts that were donated by Malvern students, families, faculty and staff.
The party reinforced the effort the entire Malvern Prep community makes to help those less fortunate. Best Nest is a child welfare organization in Philadelphia that supports the medical, physical and emotional needs of children affected by HIV. These children may have the condition from birth or have parents struggling with this condition. For more information about Best Nest please visit
www.BestNest.org.
More photos from the event may be viewed in the
Spiritual Life section of the Photo Gallery.