✈ Houston → Kuala Lumpur · par avion

Kids helping kids, one trip at a time.

TakingitHome turns family trips abroad into gift drives for children in orphanages. It began when a middle-schooler from Houston asked the kids of one orphanage in Malaysia a simple question — what would you like for Christmas? — and then granted the whole list.

Start a drive Read the story

The children's handwritten Christmas wish list from Thangam Ilam Welfare Society — the original wish list, December 2023

Our story

From a family visit to a suitcase full of wishes

Every year · Houston ⇆ Malaysia

The idea

On yearly family trips to visit her grandparents, our founder Syrena noticed orphanages full of kids who could be helped with things easily available back in the USA. With her uncle's help in Malaysia, she found the right place to start: Thangam Ilam Welfare Society, a home for school-aged children in Kuala Lumpur.

November · Thangam Ilam

The wish list

Each child was asked one question: what would you like this year for Christmas? They answered with a handwritten request list — the same one you see at the top of this page.

December · Houston

The drive

Syrena created a flyer and shared it with family and friends across Houston, collecting every requested item as donations in kind. Then she and her sibling personally wrapped each gift and packed them all for the flight.

January · Kuala Lumpur

Delivery day

Once in Kuala Lumpur, Syrena organized a visit to the orphanage and presented a gift to each child, one by one — along with a surprise lunch for everyone.

Photos

From wrapping paper to touchdown

Wrapping donated gifts in Houston — wrapping night in Houston

Gifts being wrapped and labeled — every gift wrapped by hand

Wrapped gifts stacked and ready — ready for the flight

Gifts packed for travel to Malaysia — packed & counted

Presenting gifts at Thangam Ilam Welfare Society — delivery day at Thangam Ilam

Children receiving their gifts and sharing lunch — …and a surprise lunch

The vision

Every teen who travels can take it home.

Millions of teens visit family abroad every year. Imagine if each trip carried a suitcase of wishes granted. TakingitHome exists to make that easy — so any teen, on any vacation or family visit, can run their own drive for kids who need it.

touching every child, in every country

Start a drive

Four steps. One unforgettable trip.

Pick a place

Traveling to visit family? Ask a relative to help identify an orphanage or children's home near them that could use support.

Get the wish list

Ask each child what they'd like. A handwritten list makes every gift personal — and every child seen.

Run your drive

Share a flyer with family and friends at home. Collect the requested items as donations, then wrap each gift yourself.

Deliver in person

Pack the gifts in your luggage and hand them to each child on your trip. Bonus points for a surprise lunch.

I want to start a drive

Handmade from the start

Even our logo began as a sketch

TakingitHome has been hands-on since day one — hand-picked gifts, hand-wrapped boxes, and a logo first drawn by hand. That's the point: this is what one kid with an idea (and a suitcase) can do.

…and where it landed

the original sketch