Local businesses have been supporting the Carman and District Christmas Cheer Board more than ever this year, making for full hampers this holiday season.
Since 2020, the local cheer board has switched to only accepting monetary donations, allowing them to buy every single item for the hampers rather than giving everyone different food items that were donated.
“While people may be disappointed in the loss of ‘a tin for the bin’ type of collections, this model has been a great improvement for our board,” said Deana Gauld, board chairman. “Financial donations help us get the items we need, and we can guarantee safe, fresh food for our recipients.”
Homestead Co-op is a big partner for the local cheer board, ordering the groceries for them as they go on sale in November, then storing them until the hampers are ready to be packed. They bring in stuffing, cranberry sauce, cake mix, peanut butter, pasta, and sauce. Instead of giving ham and turkey in the hampers, the cheer board gives a gift card for families to use to purchase a meat of their choice for dinner or other groceries they may need.
The cheer board also gives a gift for each child of the family in each hamper. Red Apple ran their Fill Santa’s Sleigh event again this year, which brought in numerous toys for the hampers and an opportunity for people to give financial donations. Home Hardware also set out a table of wished-for toys and mitts for people to buy and donate as the cheer board is hoping to include those, along with neck warmers, in their hampers.
“The result is thousands of dollars of toys purchased locally and donated to families,” said Gauld.
This year, the cheer board has also been fundraising for hygiene items like shampoo, soap, and body wash. Gauld said though those items are outside the board’s mandate, being clean is an important part of feeling good, being confident, and for children, fitting in. That’s why Gallery Dental donated toothbrushes and toothpaste for the hampers this year, and why The Prices Rite created the opportunity for customers to make a $5 donation to go towards a child’s hygiene pack.
Carman Pharmacy also gave their customers the chance to donate hygiene items for adults, which includes soap and body wash. Newman Hand Insurance and Rural Buds Cannabis each made a $500 donation — Newman Hand gave it for hygiene bags and Rural Buds gave it for deodorant to be added to the bags. Birch and Honey Salon collected feminine hygiene products for the cheer board this year too.
“Again, not our mandate,” stated Gauld. “However, if they are donated to us, we are happy to use our hampers as an avenue to get them to women, as they are expensive and necessary.”
Tim Hortons also partnered with the cheer board this year, donating $1,500 from their Holiday Smile Cookie week to them and Carman Food Pantry, who serves the same families as the cheer board.
“Our board members are so grateful for the enthusiastic support from our community,” said Gauld. “We could not do this without everyone pitching in.”
She added that these partnerships allow them to give as much as they can to the families in need. They have 170 hampers going out this year, and with everything being more expensive this year than ever before, the support from all the local businesses has made all the hampers possible.
“I want everyone who has donated, whether it was change dropped into the collection at the Sonatrice concert, a toy, a $5 donation for a hygiene bag, or a donation of your hard-earned dollars, to know we appreciate it,” said Gauld. “We all feel the stress of the holidays and yet, we also know many living right here struggle every day all year. This is an opportunity to help them, to let them know we see them, and we care for them as a part of our community.”
