Volunteers were out on Jan. 10, despite the cold temperatures, picking up Christmas trees here for the third annual Trees for Tots program in support of the Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington.
Over 160 volunteers picked up trees registered to the program and took them to volunteer-run chipping stations, where the trees were made into mulch to be used at a Guelph park come spring.
So far this year, the program has picked up 2,300 trees on 155 routes with 57 donated trucks and raised approximately $24,000 for the foundation’s grants program.
This program provides funding for children from low-income households who are unable to pay for extra curricular activities, said Kristen Drexler, events and marketing manager for the foundation.
Children can apply for up to $400 a year to pay for the extracurricular activity of their choice, be it swimming lessons, dance, camp or music lessons, to name a few.
“Last year, the average household income for a child that participated in the grants program was just under $17,000,” Drexler said. “So these are children that are of low income households that otherwise there just isn’t money for them to participate in those things.”
This year the Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington asked for a minimum donation of $10 for tree pick-up and organizers were surprised when they received one donation for $510.
“That one was kind of a shocker,” Drexler said.
Though the Dec. 31 deadline has passed to request a pick-up, she said any individual who registered their tree but for some reason still have it, can expect an email with more details about an alternative pick-up date.
In addition to the tree pick-up donations, Drexler said the foundation also received monetary donations from various businesses, including Scotiabank, which donated $5,000.
At the end of the day volunteers were given a warm chili lunch provided by Ox Guelph.
