‘Praying for a good Christmas’: Angel Tree program helps mom raising daughter, grandkids

Catherine Muccigrosso
·4 min read

Brandy Winston wants to give her teen daughter and two young grandchildren a happy Christmas in Charlotte. But she needs help.

The 40-year-old single mother known as “Ms. B” has two daughters. She’s also the guardian of her two grandchildren.

Three years ago, Winston said her eldest daughter Angel was shot by her then-husband just days before Thanksgiving at their home in Virginia. Angel was four months pregnant with her second child. Dwayne Morris, now 24, is serving a 17-year prison sentence, Winston said.

Winston, who was in Norfolk, Virginia, at the time said she was on the phone with Angel when she heard the gunfire.

“My daughter had gotten shot twice by her husband,” Winston said. Angel, now 24, survived and still lives in Virginia with family. She suffers from mental trauma and chronic physical ailments. “She’s a miracle because she’s still here.”

Winston, who took full custody of her grandchildren, bought a three-bedroom house sight unseen in east Charlotte. It doesn’t have a bathtub. The kitchen floor sags. The roof needs work.

Brandy Winston is guardian to her daughter’s kids, Ashanti Winston, left, and Denterrio Morris Jr.
Brandy Winston is guardian to her daughter’s kids, Ashanti Winston, left, and Denterrio Morris Jr.

“The tragedy of all of this really took a toll on me,” Winston said on the GoFundMe she set up Nov. 20. “It’s hard for me at times but God got us, I always say. These children deserve a wonderful education and a beautiful life to live.”

That’s where the Angel Tree program of the Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte comes in, with help around the holidays. The program matches children in need with anonymous donors who buy them presents for Christmas.

In cases where donors don’t step up, Charlotte Observer readers cover the expense by giving to the Empty Stocking Fund, which the Observer has sponsored since about 1920.

Winston said she learned about the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program from a counselor.

Winston’s wish list

Both of Winston’s grandkids have disabilities. Grandson Denterrio Morris Jr., 3, has autism and ADHD. He’s non-verbal, Winston said. Her granddaughter Ashanti Winston, 2, was born with Laryngomalacia, a condition that causes problems swallowing and breathing, and she has severe sleep apnea.

“I wasn’t expecting to do this (raising the grandkids) but it happened and I didn’t have (a) choice,” Winston said.

Winston beams when talking about her 13-year-old daughter, Brenajel “Nana” Winston, who was at her sister’s house at the time of the shooting. She’s an AB honor roll student who loves basketball and wants to be a lawyer.

Brandy Winston is proud of her teen daughter, Brenajel Winston, an AB honor student.
Brandy Winston is proud of her teen daughter, Brenajel Winston, an AB honor student.

“I’ve been taking care of these kids with the help of God and programs like Angel Tree,” Winston said. “These kids deserve a good life, a better life.”

Her Christmas wish is provide necessities for all three children like clothes and shoes. Nana needs eyeglasses.

But of course, bicycles and some toys would be nice too

For Winston though, her biggest need is reliable transportation. Her 2014 blue four-door Toyota truck with over 200,000 is on its last legs, she said. And she spends about $225 a week in gas driving her daughter to and from a charter school in Statesville, and her grandchildren to schools in First and Fourth Ward in uptown Charlotte.

Supporting the Angel Tree program

Last season, Observer readers donated $227,822 to the campaign that helps provide gifts for kids, as well as senior citizens and people with disabilities.

Money raised by the 2021 Empty Stocking Fund campaign allowed The Salvation Army to purchase more than 9,270 toys for this year’s campaign, along with the gift cards for seniors, foster children and adults with disabilities.

The 2022 Angel Tree program is helping 2,610 families in Mecklenburg and Union counties this holiday season, representing 6,660 children, Salvation Army officials said.

And the program is providing gift cards to 1,716 seniors and 436 people with disabilities, according to The Salvation Army. In 2021, the program served 2,672 families representing 6,804 children. In addition, the program served 1,378 seniors and provided 417 gift cards for foster children and individuals with disabilities.

Brandy Winston’s 2-year-old granddaughter Ashanti Winston, will receive Christmas presents from the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program.
Brandy Winston’s 2-year-old granddaughter Ashanti Winston, will receive Christmas presents from the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree program.

‘The love they deserve’

Winston is a cervical cancer survivor and disabled. She said she is scrambling amid higher prices and inflation to pay the bills and buy things like paper towels, baby wipes and pull-ups.

“It’s a struggle with the household stuff,” Winston said. “Mainly my concern is the transportation and these kids’ well-being.

“All I can do is pray they have a good Christmas. And keep giving them the love they deserve.”

How to Give

To donate online, visit EmptyStockingFundCLT.org.

To donate by mail, send checks to: The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte, P.O. Box 31128, Charlotte, NC 28231. Make checks payable to The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte and write “Empty Stocking Fund” in the memo line.

Anyone who prefers not to adopt an angel can still buy a gift for one on Walmart Registry. Walmart will box and send the gift to The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte.

Questions concerning your donation? Call 704-716-2769.