Throughout Wellington, food banks and similar organizations are stepping up to ensure families in need receive help to make the Christmas season special for everyone.
Arthur Food Bank
The Arthur Food Bank is helping to supply the local Lions Club with food for its Christmas hampers this year.
“We often give them some of the stuff we have in stock,” said food bank volunteer Marilyn Theurer.
The food bank helps with things like cereal, soup and canned vegetables, she added.
Though they’re called Christmas hampers, they contain more food than a family would need for a Christmas meal, Theurer said.
People can apply for a hamper at the Wellington Learning Centre in Arthur. The hampers will be assembled on Dec. 18 and distributed on Dec. 19.
Any food collections in December at churches, schools or grocery stores go to the Lions Club for the hampers as well as any donations made at the food bank. Community members can pick up a card from the tree at TD bank to purchase a $30 to $40 gift for a child of the age and gender on the card.
Last year 65 hampers were distributed in the community.
Centre Wellington Food Bank
The Centre Wellington Food Bank is also well into its hamper and gift programs this year.
The programs are a great stress reliever for parents because they know they’ll be able to provide for their families over the Christmas season, said Jackie Andrews, chair of the food bank’s board.
Families can approach the food bank to sign up for a hamper and to be part of the Angel Program, through which an individual, family or company buys gifts for families with children 18 years old and under, Andrews explained.
Last year there were 196 hampers distributed.
The food bank has given lists of different supplies to churches and other organizations to ensure the food bank has everything for the hampers and the Angel Program, Andrews said.
To ensure larger families receive full turkeys, the food bank has partnered with Scotiabank. From Dec. 1 to 24 the bank will have a turkey drive where the public can buy a $20 turkey ticket and for every $20 ticket purchased Scotiabank will match it up to $5,000 and the money will go towards purchasing turkeys for the hampers, Andrews explained.
This year, hampers and gifts will be distributed on Dec. 11.
Clifford Food Bank
The Clifford Food Bank is expecting to distribute about 25 Christmas hampers this year, said food bank coordinator Marion Agla.
There are flyers up in the library and the post office with a list of ages and genders of people who have requested a hamper so donors can get an idea for appropriate gifts.
The food bank tries to give two or three weeks worth of food in the hamper, not just a Christmas dinner, Agla said.
“If we have it on the shelves there’s no point in leaving it there,” she said. “So we actually give them a lot.”
The food bank also gives fresh food from the Toronto food terminal, such as potatoes, cabbage, carrots, turnips and fresh fruit and they buy the appropriate-sized turkey to suit the family.
The food bank tries to include soup, a can of beans, a package of cookies, a box of cereal, a jar of peanut butter, chocolate and more in the hamper.
The food bank plans to start packaging the hampers on Dec. 16 and 17 and to distribute around Dec. 18 while school is still in session.
Drayton Food Bank
The Drayton Food Bank is doing a Christmas food hamper program this year, said Shane Stege, a food bank volunteer.
And because people are familiar with the program, they’re already getting calls. To qualify, the family must have a local phone number.
“Somebody calls up and asks for a food hamper and then we make a food hamper and it’s a little special at Christmas because we’ll throw a turkey and a bit of extra food in and then they come and pick it up [on] Dec. 20,” Stege said.
The food bank puts together the hampers with donated goods and food it purchases with donated money. Hampers may contain cheese, milk, bread, eggs, soups, noodles and more.
Stege said the hampers will likely fill two banana boxes or more this year, hopefully lasting the family at least a month. Last year there were about 32 hampers given out at Christmas, Stege said.
East Wellington Community Services
Covering Guelph-Eramosa and Erin, East Wellington Community Services (EWCS) has partnered with the Adopt-A-Family program through the Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington to match families in need this holiday season with donors who help make some of the family’s Christmas wishes come true.
For those not qualifying for Adopt-A-Family, EWCS, which operates food banks in Erin village and Rockwood, matches them with sponsors in the area, explained Erika Westcott, EWCS manager of marketing and fund development.
EWCS is now matching families with sponsors and the hampers will be distributed about two weeks before Christmas. A typical hamper will include all of the fixings for Christmas Day meals, possibly including everything from pancakes to a turkey. Typically there are 100 to 110 hampers given out per year and it’s anticipated this year will see an increase, Westcott said.
Harriston Food Bank
Though the Harriston Food Bank is not directly involved in putting together Christmas hampers, it has run some food drives throughout the fall, said treasurer Dave Mallett.
The food bank does help divvy up the food items for the hampers but it’s not really involved, Mallet said. However, if the hamper program needs some food items, the food bank supplements the gaps.
The program is coordinated at the Royal Canadian Legion in Harriston, and people need to request a hamper before Dec. 5, with distribution set for about a week before Christmas.
Last year there were between 40 and 50 hampers given out in Harriston, said Bev May, a Christmas hamper coordinator.
If the hampers are missing items, organizers use donated money buy those supplies.
The hampers usually contain canned foods, and if there’s money, apples and oranges, potatoes and pasta will be included – but there aren’t many treats, May said.
The hamper program is not included as part of the food bank program so it doesn’t disrupt regular food bank pick-ups. However, families do not need to be food bank clients to request a Christmas hamper.
Mount Forest Community Pantry
The Mount Forest Christmas Bureau is an offshoot of the Community Pantry and is responsible for assembling and distributing Christmas hampers in Mount Forest, said Daphne Rappard, Christmas Bureau coordinator.
Families can come to the Christmas Bureau on self-referral or through a service and they will receive enough food for a week.
All of the community pantry collection box donations at No Frills and Foodland will be going to the Christmas Bureau until Dec. 8.
Each child will also receive a full outfit of clothing, including socks, mitts and hats, as well as other gifts in the hamper, Rappard said.
The Christmas hamper could include a turkey, potatoes, carrots, onions, cucumbers, juice, mandarin oranges, cookies and more. And every child will receive a toothbrush.
“Each year we’re adding more nutritious stuff,” Rappard said.
The Mennonite Savings and Credit Union has a turkey tree where people can sponsor the purchase of a turkey for a family. The local fire department is stuffing a fire truck with food and another company has a sock, hat and mitt tree, she said. Last year the bureau served 390 people.
Families need to have their request in by Dec. 1, the donation deadline is Dec. 8 and the hampers will be distributed on Dec. 22.
Palmerston Food Bank
The Palmerston Food Bank is giving out an additional Christmas hamper regardless of its regular food schedule.
However, people who apply for Christmas hampers do not necessarily have to be registered with the food bank. The Christmas hampers include enough food for Christmas dinner, said Barbara Burrows, president of the food bank.
The food bank works with schools and churches in the area, which gather gifts to accompany the hampers for children and maybe the adults, she said.
“If you all work together and communicate it’s amazing what we can do,” Burrows said.
The food that goes into the hampers is partially from the food bank’s stock and partially from what’s donated just for the Christmas hampers, like turkeys.
The food bank asks that individuals seeking a Christmas hamper put in their request by the first week of December.
The hampers will likely include a turkey, potatoes, vegetables, stuffing, juice, buns and dessert.
Though it’s for a Christmas meal, the supplies will last for more than just one day, Burrows said.
