24/7 Christmas

Start your journey this Christmas and keep that life giving spirit alive in Thunder Bay all year long.

Shelter House
How do we begin? Let’s start by having a look at Shelter House. Volunteers are always needed for their Christmas dinners during which 400-500 people are fed and given gifts. Form a group of family members and friends and discover what meaningful work serving others is all about.

Cal Rankin, Executive Director summed it up by saying, “Giving to others is absolutely empowering.”

As the cold weather intensifies, Shelter House ramps up as more people need a daily meal and perhaps a place to stay overnight. Right now, they can accommodate 62 people for the night. With the recent funding success for the managed alcohol program designed to help fill the gaps for the most marginalized, fifteen more clients will be accommodated.
Fundraising events such as Empty Bowls, Caring Hearts and the Relay for Shelter both provide many opportunities for a wide range of volunteers. Put your special skills and talents to work. Check out Shelter House online at shelterhouse.on.ca or call 623-8182 to talk with Margaret Ager. Donations can be made online at Canada Helps or mailed. The challenge before all of us as Cal noted is “..to practise the spirit of Christmas after the season.”

The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army offers another incredible variety of volunteer positions. The Santa Shuffle scheduled for Saturday, December 3 is a fun run to help fight poverty and restore dignity. To register, visit www.santashuffle.com. To volunteer at this event, call Gail at 345-6492.

The Salvation Army Christmas dinner is held by the Valhalla on December 18. Volunteers are needed from December 7-16 to help collect and package donated gifts for the event. A traditional Christmas sight is the Salvation Army Kettle Campaign. Call Gail to reserve your two hour shift at an indoor or outdoor location.

Other opportunities to serve during and beyond the Christmas season include: training for disaster services, servers on scene, food preparation, drivers and the soup van. The van serves 50-150 clients from infants to seniors every night. There are school programs such as the Red Cap anti-bullying campaign which might be a way for you to use your skills for a very worthwhile cause. There are so many possibilities for each of us to extend the Christmas spirit all year. As Gail Kromm, Public Relations and Regional Development Representative put it, “Volunteers are crucial to our operations. Without volunteers, we couldn’t do all that we do.”

Dew Drop Inn
The motto of the Dew Drop Inn is ‘Neighbours Helping Neighbours’. Paul Deighton, President and Chair of the Board, says, “That is who we are, what we do and how we do it.”
On Christmas Day they provide a full sit-down dinner with gifts for the children. Throughout the year a daily meal is served with special meals on Easter Day and Thanksgiving. Financial donations, gifts of time or food are always needed and greatly appreciated.

Since 1981, this St. Andrew’s Roman Catholic Church endeavour has been providing for an ever increasing group. Above and beyond the daily work, there are fundraisers during the year. For example, Dew Drop Days feature a yard sale, and many hands make this kind of loving work a success.

Terri Favreau, Director, expressed the mission of the Dew Drop Inn simply by saying, “If you’re hungry, you’re welcome here.” So many of us are hungry on a different level; the hunger to do meaningful work, to be of service, and to make a difference. To volunteer contact St. Andrew’s at 345-5202.

Enter into the spirit of Christmas. Jump the gap from thinking about it to doing it. Contact one of these worthy organizations and experience the joy of giving beyond the brief December days of Christmas.