Give the Gift of Christmas – 2013

The Cridge Centre offers low cost housing and supportive services to woman and children leaving relationship violence, as well as families in transition for many other reasons.

Our Cridge Christmas Hamper program provides these families with an opportunity to celebrate Christmas without a lot of the stress low income families often have in trying to put aside extra money for gifts and Christmas dinner when they are already on a very tight budget.

Each year we’re honoured to witness the shared joy, not only in the families, but also in the donors as they come to drop off their completed hampers. It is obvious to us that the process has been extremely rewarding for them as well.

Here is what some of our clients have had to say:

• “Without this we would not have had anything for Christmas”
• “The hamper made Christmas for us”

For those who have donated in previous years, thank you so much for your very generous support. We hope you will consider preparing a hamper this year, too.

Donation Options

• Women with children – Family size varies from one child to several
• Women without children – Hamper is for one person
• Two-parent families with children – Family size varies from one child to several plus 2 adult
• Program needs – A list of program needs can be supplied on request
• Food drive for non-perishable items – for our clients to access from our food cupboard, which is in demand year round

All women and families are receiving services within the Cridge Dovetail Program. More information about these services is available on the program webpage.

Here is how it works:

• Using the guidelines below, estimate what size of family you want to donate to or if you would like to do a combination (for example, a woman without children plus a family of two).
• Print, fill in, and fax the Cridge Christmas Hamper Form to 250-220-8566. You can also scan it and e-mail it to lneufeldt@cridge.org.
• We will send you a wish list for the family of the size(s) of your choice. The list may include specific items and/or areas of interest for each member of the family, as well as sizes for clothing or maybe a favourite store for a gift card. What you choose from the list is up to you.
• Have some fun! Go shopping, have a wrapping party and put it all together.
• Finally, bring your completed hamper to the Cridge.
  Drop off dates for 2013 are:
  • Monday, December 16th 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Tuesday, December 17th 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
  • Wednesday, December 18th 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM

Guidelines:

Here are some guidelines of what a hamper will often include:

• New, wrapped gifts for each member of the family (typically donors spend between $25-$50 per person).
• Items for the whole family or the house may also be included.
• Grocery gift card. This will vary depending on whether it is to be used to purchase Christmas dinner or to purchase food into the New Year as well. A guide is anywhere between $20-$40 per person.
• Do not include alcohol, cigarettes or cash.

Thank you for your interest in helping our families this Christmas!

Please contact Louise Neufeldt at 250-995-6418 if you have any further questions

Printable version of this information sheet: Christmas Hamper Information Sheet
Printable hamper form: Cridge Christmas Hamper Form

NOTE: For information on supporting The Cridge Young Parent Outreach Program please contact Nicole (Nandrews@cridge.org).