SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - Seven is a special number for Kelvin and Leslie Moss of Granite Bay. They have seven children, and their last child was nicknamed “Seven.” And, on the night they went to the Sacramento area’s charitable vending machines, there were seven members of their family present.

And sevens are especially lucky for struggling individuals and families throughout the Sacramento region and the world. Because last week, the Moss family typed in “777” into a Light the World Giving Machine and donated 30 gifts to those in need. It is considered a “Giving Machine jackpot,” worth $2,035 for five local charities and two global ones.

“We didn’t know we’d do this until we got there that night. We had seven children, and seven of us were at the Giving Machines that night. It just felt right to choose 777,” mother and grandmother Leslie Moss said. “We really felt we hit the jackpot for our community. It was a great night.”

Light the World Giving Machines, sponsored and financed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are at the Westfield Galleria at Roseville for a third year and are filled with cards detailing charitable gifts. When one item is purchased, the card falls to the bottom, just like a candy bar drops when purchased at a vending machine. Joining Kelvin and Leslie at the Giving Machine were son-in-law Eric Stratton and four grandchildren.

“It was really fun to see every single card drop to the bottom one by one,” said Leslie. “The kids would shout as they dropped: ‘Someone is getting new underwear!’ ‘Someone is getting diapers for their baby!’” And so on, she says, until all 30 cards dropped.

Twenty-five of the 30 gifts are for individuals or families in the greater Sacramento region who are suffering financially or emotionally, and the gifts are designed to provide food, comfort, counseling and other services to help them on their path toward self-reliance. The Moss family knows a bit about suffering emotionally, as they lost three of their sons to accidental deaths in the past four years.

“Our grandchildren were really on board with this, in giving to others who are less-fortunate and suffering at this time,” Leslie said. “They wanted to make sure that heaven could be involved, that their uncles could be there, too.”

Before heading to the Giving Machines, Grandma and Grandpa talked to the children about what the Giving Machines are all about and to think about the specific gift they wanted to choose for a needy person or family.

“We talked about how usually with a vending machine you get something for yourself, but with the Giving Machine, this time you are getting something to help someone else,” Leslie said. “They were so thoughtful about why they chose that specific gift.”

Bennett, 14, chose suicide prevention therapy from Lighthouse Counseling & Family Resource Center because “it’s the gift that will keep giving,” Leslie said. Lighthouse, based throughout Placer County, provides counseling, educational classes and programs and assists clients in obtaining resources to help them through a challenging time. The other gifts in the Giving Machine for Lighthouse that the Moss family also purchased are child abuse and domestic violence prevention counseling sessions, one week worth of diapers for a single mother with a newborn, and a three-day supply of emergency food.

Winston, who goes by Win, is 8 years old, and he chose three days of safe shelter for a family or individual in need, provided by Catholic Charities throughout the Sacramento region. Win chose that, Leslie says, “because whenever he sees a homeless person, he feels so sad for them and wants to help take care of them.” Other gifts for Catholic Charities are an infant care kit for a new mother, a “dress for success” gift that provides a job seeker a new outfit, one week of food for a senior experiencing food insecurity, and job training for someone entering the workforce.

Daisy, 5, “couldn’t bear to think about someone going to bed without a blanket and a pillow,” so she wanted to give the “Pillow & Bedding” provided by Al-Misbaah Charitable Aid, Leslie said. The Sacramento-based charity has helped numerous refugees and vulnerable families get established in Northern California. The other gifts for Al-Misbaah are socks and hat for someone who needs the extra warmth, a hygiene kit to help a community member stay clean, a backpack filled with school supplies for a student, and a bicycle for a child for exercise, adventure and to ride to and from school.

Daisy’s twin brother, Freddy, “loves to play soccer, and he couldn’t figure out how any child could go without a soccer ball,” Leslie said. So, he chose the gift of four soccer balls for a school to help teach students teamwork and promote fitness. That gift is offered by Right to Play, a global charity that helps children in impoverished nations thrive by promoting the “power of play.” The other gifts in the Giving Machine purchased are 20 storybooks for primary schoolchildren and menstrual hygiene kits to help female students stay in school.

The Moss family purchased all those gifts, along with others from three other charities. They are:

First Step Communities in Sacramento and Roseville, which provides interim housing and emergency shelter in the Sacramento area and Roseville. Their gifts in the Giving Machines are a kit of hygiene essentials, new underwear, a warm blanket and pillow, a winter coat and 100 laundry vouchers.

Rancho Cordova Food Locker’s Community Food Hub, whose gifts in the Giving Machines are two gallons of milk for children, an emergency weekend food pack for students, a one-month supply of fresh produce for a family, a kit of essentials to feed 10 senior citizens, and a group cooking class to teach 25 families cooking techniques and nutrition principles.

The global charity Academy for Creating Enterprise, which provides business opportunities for individuals and families in impoverished countries. The two gifts in the Roseville Giving Machines are a basket as a way to carry goods for a new business owner and, probably the most unique gift in the machines, two piglets to help a family start a business.

“It was just an awesome experience for us to give to so many people at the same time,” Leslie said. “We hope to do again next year and make it a family tradition.”

The Light the World Giving Machines are located on the first floor of Westfield Galleria at Roseville, near the giant Christmas tree. 

The Giving Machines will keep giving through New Year’s Day. 

To see all the gifts available, their prices and links to all the charities, go to the Sacramento and Modesto Giving Machines website at www.givingmachinesgreatersacramento.org. H