Holiday cards evoke Pittsburgh cheer, benefit charities

Happy holiday wishes — along with scenes that bring back memories of special people and places — help make the season more meaningful for those who have moved away from friends and families in Western Pennsylvania.

Several local charitable organizations, including the Lupus Foundation of Pennsylvania, continue to carry on the tradition of offering holiday greeting cards that help support their causes.

“We typically sell between 10,000 and 15,000 cards each year,” says Lori McCann, executive director of the Lupus Foundation, based in Station Square. Proceeds from the holiday card campaign help to benefit the 66,000 patients affected by the disease in Pennsylvania.

“The sales will help us to continue to provide education, awareness and support services for patients and their families,” says McCann. “(This year) also celebrates our 40th anniversary. The cards are an important way to raise funds in order to help us to sustain the foundation for the next 40 years or as long as we are needed by patients.”

This year's Lupus Foundation cards, once again based on watercolor paintings by the late Pittsburgh artist Jess Hager, depict four familiar scenes: the Horne's Christmas tree, the Kaufmann's clock, the Monongahela Incline and the ice rink at PPG Place.

McCann says they brought back prints of the Horne's tree and the Kaufmann's clock after several years because they were symbols of the city's two former flagship department stores. The incline and the skating rink represent places still in use today.

“There is so much history and nostalgia in Pittsburgh, but also so much hope for the future,” she says. “The cards are a nice way to remember traditions of the past, as well as embracing the revitalization going on in and around the city today. The scenes offered this year really do combine the best of both worlds.”

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society also offers holiday cards, featuring Pittsburgh scenes by local artist Mary Lois Verrilla, who has created 18 images for the organization. Her scene for 2015 features Mt. Washington's Duquesne Incline decorated with a holiday wreath and overlooking the Point.

Also available in limited quantities are holiday cards from previous years with Verrilla's views of the West End Overlook, McKees Rocks Bottoms, Horne's tree, the North Shore and more.

“The nostalgia and the familiarity of her images are cherished by Pittsburghers,” says Leah Crow, campaign specialist for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. She says sales from the holiday cards will help the society's mission of working to cure leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and Hodgkin's disease — and to improve the quality of life for patients and their families.

Other popular holiday cards are those offered by Make-A-Wish Greater Pennsylvania and West Virginia, an organization that makes wishes come true for children with life-threatening medical conditions. The cards are designed by children, and winners are selected anonymously by Make-A-Wish staff.

Brady Herr, 12, of Cranberry, who was granted his wish to go the Orlando theme parks in 2014, is among the five winners again this year for his holiday wreath drawing with the sentiment, “Happy Holidays! May the simple joys of the season be yours.”

Other young artists whose drawings grace the 2015 Make-A-Wish cards are Danielle, 16, of Richwood, W.Va., who drew a snowman family and a tree ornaments design; Anastasia, 10, of Mountain Top, Luzerne County, whose design is a Christmas cat; and Grace, 13, of York, York County, for her snow angel.

The Little Sisters of the Poor of Pittsburgh offer their annual Christmas card with a pencil drawing by Sister Martha Lieb of Mary holding the baby Jesus. Proceeds from the sale of the cards benefit the care of the elderly poor.

Sister Judith, Little Sisters of the Poor administrator, says she feels people are drawn to their holiday cards because they reflect the true meaning of Christmas.

“Every year, the card depicts the blessed mother holding baby Jesus just as any new mother would hold her newborn, with love and affection,” she says. “We feel blessed to share the joy and peace of Christmas through our card.”

Each year approximately 5,000 cards are sold, she says.

Candy Williams is a contributing writer for Trib Total Media.