A grassroots effort to make sure local families can celebrate Christmas with dinner and gifts began with a single turkey.
Debbie Yaniw, a Wasaga Beach resident, was given a free turkey prior to Christmas three years ago. She already had one, so she thought she’d pay it forward.
“I asked on Facebook who needed one, and a bunch of people sent me messages about families in need,” said Yaniw.
A single turkey suddenly seemed insufficient, so Yaniw set out to help the families named in those Facebook messages.
“I rallied around my girls and we were able to help six families,” said Yaniw. “That first Christmas when I went to pay forward the turkey, I couldn’t emotionally deal with the fact that people weren’t having a Christmas, so I wanted to make sure they had one.”
Christmas in a Box was born. Last year, Yaniw packed boxes for 21 families thanks to donations from friends, family, neighbours, and strangers.
Now in its third year, Yaniw said she’ll be packing boxes for at least 30 local families in the Stayner, Wasaga Beach, and Collingwood area. The boxes go to families who are nominated by others in the community. She has since built an online form to submit nominations for local families in need.
“People who need the help the most quite often don’t ask for it,” said Yaniw.
Each Christmas in a Box contains the groceries needed to cook a turkey dinner, including fresh organic veggies donated by a local farm, and a dessert (often handmade by Yaniw and her friends). The boxes also contain hats and mitts and a small gift for each of the kids in the family.
This year the boxes will be handed out on Dec. 22 at Living Faith Christian Church following a carol service. On Dec. 21, Yaniw will be putting the boxes together.
She is still looking for donations of turkeys, gift cards for teens, toys for older kids, and she can always take grocery store gift cards to fill in any last minute gaps. Donations of gift bags and wrapping supplies would also be welcome.
Tomorrow (Dec. 11) there will be a promotion at Dominos pizza in Collingwood for a $3.99 medium pizza (pepperoni or cheese), and $1 from the sale of each pizza will be donated to Christmas in a Box.
There will also be a donation collection bin at Dominos pizza for anyone wishing to donate items for the Christmas in a Box program.
You can donate items up until Dec. 21. Contact Debbie Yaniw on Facebook here if you’d like to make a donation to arrange a time to drop it off, or if you’d like to nominate a local family who is unable to celebrate Christmas with a dinner this year.
