Christmas Hamper steady in 2018

By Adelle Ellis, Times Reporter

The Strathmore and Wheatland County Christmas Hamper Society provided 245 hampers and 272 child gift bags to deserving families within Strathmore, Wheatland County and other local communities this past Christmas Season, numbers which are on par with those of recent years.
Of the 245 families that received Christmas hampers, 185 were from Strathmore, 23 from Gleichen, nine from Rockyford, eight from Carseland, eight from Hussar, seven from the County of Wheatland and five families were from Standard.
“There’s a definite need, in the range of 250 families yearly that seriously look forward to this time of year so that they can get through the season in good health and spirits,” said Craig Stone, chairperson of the society that began serving the area in 1985. “When it’s that amount of people, if you take the percentages in Strathmore it’s a considerable percentage. That’s why I think (this campaign) is worthwhile,” he said.
With a campaign season starting in mid-November and running straight through until just before Christmas, approximately 130 volunteers donated 2,500 hours of their time to pick up, sort and organize food, toys and personal hygiene items for the hampers. A dedicated five-person executive committee of volunteers also donated over 1,000 hours of their time throughout the year working on other tasks to improve the program.
In an effort to improve the quality of food given out last year, more fresh produce, meat and dairy products were also handed out to hamper recipients along with traditional non-perishable staples.
Each family, depending on their size, received between $350-$550 worth of canned and boxed items, fresh fruit and vegetables, and other refrigerated products. Gift bags of a $140 value were also handed out to every child.
Contents and value of the Christmas hampers and gift bags vary year to year depending on the volume of donations received.
“We’re down a little bit in cash this year and we’re down a little bit in foods … it didn’t hurt us … we can manipulate our quantities and stuff to fit what is being projected,” said Stone, estimating that both cash and food donations were approximately seven per cent lower than those of last year, something he believes reflects the current economic status in Alberta, and something that won’t likely change for the upcoming 2019 Christmas hampers.
Stone estimated that approximately 75-80 per cent of Christmas hamper recipients are also food bank clients and that they rely on the food bank throughout the rest of the year to make ends meet. Both the Strathmore and Wheatland County Christmas Hamper Society and the Wheatland County Food Bank work together to ensure that those in need are taken care of throughout the year.
“We’ve got a community that is not only generous in their time but their money and donations and involvement. Because of that, the hampers and the gift bags have grown quite significant,” said Stone.
The Christmas hamper society is currently planning for 2019 and once campaign dates are set, information on the campaign, volunteering and donating can be found at their website christmashampersociety.com.