The North Shore is home to many low-income seniors and people with disabilities who can’t afford Christmas. On top of that hardship, they might not have any family to celebrate with.
The North Shore Christmas Bureau aims to brighten the spirits of the less fortunate by giving families, seniors and those with disabilities a hamper filled with presents and a gift card for groceries.
But it’s the thoughtful presents, the extras – like a special tea or box of chocolates tucked in the hamper by the sponsor family – that really make a difference in the hearts of those struggling this time of the year with the merriment swirling around them.
“It’s like they have won the lottery,” explains North Shore Christmas Bureau manager Michele Varley, of the seniors’ reaction to opening their hampers. “They say they don’t need a lot, but it’s nice that they can have these extra treats at Christmas.”
Varley heard back from one older gentleman who loved the sweater he received from his sponsor family last Christmas. Every year he picks up his hamper, takes it home and waits until Christmas morning to open it.
“That’s his Christmas,” says Varley.
One elderly lady asked for warm socks. Another was so appreciative of the “wonderful” scented candles which “smelled like Christmas” that her sponsor had included in her hamper.
Most Christmas Bureau applicants ask for the basic necessities: food, sheets for their bed, or very little, says Varley.
And then there are those who want to give what little they have and share it with others around them.
Varley tells the story of a Christmas Bureau client who saves all year to buy a turkey and some fixings to throw a dinner for the tenants in her building.
“Literally Jan. 1 she starts saving for next year,” says Varley, adding the woman knows the window to buy the turkey when it’s a relatively affordable 78 cents a pound.
Last year the Christmas Bureau provided hampers to 728 families with children, 68 seniors and 152 persons with disabilities. Among these recipients, $16,600 is the average annual income.
There are lot of widowed seniors who, after losing their spouse, are also dealing with the financial burden and request a Christmas hamper.
“They live on very little,” says Varley.
Of those receiving last year’s Christmas hampers, 732 were children, 73 per cent of whom were under 12. Nearly half of the hampers went to single-parent families.
Family Services of the North Shore relies on donations from its annual Toy Drive to stock the shelves at the Christmas Bureau for the elves, a.k.a. volunteers, to put into the kids’ hampers. This year’s toy drive is being held at the Northshore Auto Mall on Nov. 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Christmas Bureau’s goal is to have each child receive three gifts, including the older children who can be overlooked sometimes.
“The tweens and teens tend to be forgotten a little bit,” says Varley.
Headphones and gift cards for electronics or music downloads are en vogue for that age group, she suggests.
Those sponsoring a Christmas Bureau family or individual donates $50 for groceries per person they are sponsoring, as well as a $30-40 gift per person. Therefore, to sponsor a single parent with one child would cost approximately $160.
Dec. 2 is the deadline for applications to sponsor a Christmas Bureau hamper and for less fortunate families and individuals in need of some holiday cheer to request a hamper. More information about the program is available at ilovefamilyservices.com/christmas-bureau.
