Forty-six years ago a handful of St. Albert Kinettes took on a massive job to collect toys and food for the less fortunate in their community.
The job, even then was huge but imagine the task now when the community of St. Albert has grown so large, while the club that is committed to this fundraiser, is still very small.
“There are 13 of us this year and just three of us who are on the Kinette hamper campaign. The hamper campaign has grown so large, but the Kin motto is to ‘serve the community’s greatest need,’” said Kinette hamper co-chair Destiny Tremblay.
Fortunately, as St. Albert’s needy have increased in numbers, so has the larger community’s generosity, Tremblay said.
“In the past few years, on average, we helped between 200 and 300 families. We were able to give each of those families two weeks of groceries,” she said.
The sorting of toys and food takes place at the Enjoy Centre.
“The space at the Enjoy Centre is donated to us,” Tremblay said, adding that the space is just the beginning of the help the Kinettes receive to make all this gift-giving happen. Legions of St. Albert folks come out to help organize all the toys and food.
“We have help from sports teams and staff from St. Albert businesses, from the teachers’ association members as well as so many individuals. And we need them. We need an army of volunteers and every year, they come,” said Tremblay.
Volunteers also come out to assist the Kinettes and to drive and help with the distribution of hampers on Dec. 14 and Dec. 15.
But the biggest help comes from all those donations the Kinettes receive and the generous support of so many people who drop off presents and food in the hampers and in the buses supported by volunteer St. Albert Transit drivers.
Tremblay has a greater understanding of the need for those gifts now that she is working on the Kinette hamper campaign. As hamper co-chair, she fields the calls from the schools, from churches, from Stop Abuse In Families and from the food bank personnel, asking her to put a family name on the list of those requiring assistance. The phone calls have changed her perceptions.
It’s not just low-income families that need help. It’s people who have had a recent death – maybe dad died – and mom is grieving and hasn’t been able to go back to work yet. It’s seniors. It’s people who have a sick kid and then have to spend all their time at a hospital and have therefore been unable to work,” she said.
The need changes from year to year and the people, who may need a helping hand one year, are often the first to volunteer the next, Tremblay said.
The Kinettes’ first priority is to fill St. Albert’s greatest needs, but they acknowledge that the community that must be served is larger.
“If we have food left over after the hampers are filled, we donate it to the food bank. One year we donated 7,000 pounds of food to the St. Albert Food Bank. We have also supported the Morinville Toy Drive and the local Salvation Army. We always check the immediate community first but if we can, we help those nearby if there is a need and we have stuff to share. They are part of our community too.”
She also recognizes that by giving families two weeks of groceries, they can stretch their own ability to have a merrier Christmas.
“If they know they have a turkey for Christmas and if they know they have extra food, that helps them in so many ways. It takes away some of the stress. They know their children will receive gifts. They know when they have to pay those bills in January, they will have a stock of food,” Tremblay said.
Donations to the Kinettes’ Christmas hamper campaign can be made at the following locations: St. Albert Centre, St. Albert Place, Ron Hodgson Chevrolet Buick GMC, St. Albert Business & Visitor Centre, Curves, ATB Financial, Servus Place and Bellerose, Paul Kane and St. Albert high schools. A Fill-A-Bus event is taking place today, Dec. 6.
Monetary donations may be dropped off at Fire Hall #3, 100 Giroux Road. Cheques may be mailed to: Kinette Club of St. Albert, Christmas Hamper Program, PO Box 65064, Mission Hill Plaza, and St. Albert, AB T8N 5Y3.
More volunteers are welcomed. For more information, please email [email protected] or phone 780-702-9998.
