Children from less-fortunate families in Airdrie can pick out Christmas presents for their parents at no charge at the third annual Children’s Christmas Market Dec. 22.

The event will take place at the Daybreak Community Church from 4 to 8 p.m. Organizer Kimberly Ann Rose said she created the event three years ago for families in need to be able to share the gift of giving at Christmas time.

She said there are often events for parents to be able to get gifts for their children, but not the other way around.

“We wanted something to set up so that the kids would be able to have the gift of giving because a kid’s going to notice when mom and dad don’t have anything under the tree,” she said.

She reached out to the community through various social media platforms and asked for new or gently used donations for the event, including handmade items and gift certificates, she said.

“The community of Airdrie totally came together and gave us tons of stuff the first year,” she said. “The kids were able to come, they were able to pick out a gift for their parents, they were able to wrap it and make a card. It went off beautifully.”

The event has gained popularity since then, she said. The first year attracted 90 kids, and at press time, there were 270 kids registered for this year’s event.

Attendees of this year’s market will also be able to have their face painted or get their photo taken with Santa Claus, she said.

The market is run solely through donations and volunteers, and Rose said they are currently in need of gifts for men. Anyone wanting to donate or register a child for the market can do so through emailing Rose at mailto:rose6898@hotmail.ca or calling her at 403-671-6554 until Dec. 21.

“It’s for any single parent or any parent that is having a tight Christmas,” she said.