Helping makes sense. Our Christmas tree of children's wishes will make Christmas more beautiful for children.

The Christmas Tree of Children's Wishes event enabled students, employees, and other supporters of the university to contribute to fulfilling the Christmas wishes of children who do not have the opportunity to grow up in a complete family. Students from St. Cyril and Methodius University in Trnava also actively participated in the preparation and implementation of this initiative, getting involved in the organizational, communication, and implementation aspects of the event. The aim of the activity was to bring joy to children from the Center for Children and Families (CDR) and make them feel that someone is thinking of them during the holiday season. The goal of the activity was to bring joy to the children from the Center for Children and Families (CDR) and make them feel that someone is thinking of them during the holiday season.

Dozens of people from the university community took part in the charity event, choosing decorations with the wishes of specific children from the CDR in the lobby of the Herd building. Together, they managed to secure 39 gifts, one for each child's wish. The gifts were personally delivered to the CDR by Rector Katarína Slobodová Nováková and Vice-Rector Andrej Brník so that the children could unwrap them under the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve.

The activity had a significant symbolic dimension, as the gifts were not only material aid, but above all a sign of interest, solidarity, and human closeness. The involvement of UCM students also underlined the importance of the university as an open and socially responsible institution that leads young people to empathy, volunteering, and active citizenship.

The initiative also received positive feedback from the Center for Children and Families, where it was perceived as an important gesture of support and empathy. The children were thus able to enjoy the holidays with the feeling that they were noticed, accepted, and that someone was paying attention to them.

The event had a positive impact not only on the children who received gifts, but also on the donors themselves, who particularly appreciated the modesty of the children's wishes. These often concerned ordinary and practical things, which further underlined the significance of the whole initiative.

Thanks go to everyone who took part in the campaign and helped to make Christmas a little happier for the children at the Center for Children and Families. Activities like this remind us of the true essence of the holidays—togetherness, sharing joy, kindness, and hope.