In 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on the world as we know it. It will not be “business as usual” for our program this season. We anticipate there will be an increased demand for help and potentially a drop in donations. The Christmas Sharing Program will be taking great care to keep our clients, volunteers, visitors and staff safe in the office and in the community. Everyone entering the office will be provided with hand sanitizer, a temperature check, screened for travel history and required to provide contact information. Office furniture will be arranged to allow for social distancing. Surfaces, pens and chairs will be sanitized after each use. Deep cleaning will be conducted at the end of each day.

Because of social distancing and crowd gathering restrictions the pandemic has forced the cancellation of most of our usual fund-raising events including the walkathon, turkey bingo and choral concerts. We recognize that schools and churches in our community, which are usually hugely supportive, are unlikely to be able to help to the same extent this year. As a result, we will be relying more heavily on individual and corporate donations solicited through mailings and this website’s link to Canadahelps.org under the How to Help screen.

Clients will be given an opportunity to apply by alternate means Please visit the Apply screen for details on changes to the registration process. Our goal is to continue to serve the community in as responsible a manner as is required during these trying times.

When we have information about how the toy drive and Christmas dinner are affected by the pandemic, we will pass this along via this page, so please check back.