COCHRANE— The holidays are fast approaching the Cochrane Activettes have launched the 2020 Share Your Christmas Campaign to ensure everyone can participate in the holiday joy.
Share Your Christmas is a project the Activettes began more than 20 years ago, said Activettes member Kathy Hubman.
“It’s a collaborative effort among many social groups in the community, church groups, schools, businesses, individuals that all come together to donate items and gifts to give to people that are in need or have a bad year and are not able to provide a Christmas to their family,” Hubman said.
The Activettes work closely with the Cochrane and area community to ensure all those in need receive a Christmas food and gift hamper, Hubman said. She added this year is wholly unique as they face the challenge of helping community members in the face of COVID-19.
They typically begin planning for the campaign in early September, but got to work a little earlier in light of the pandemic.
“We’ve had some new challenges, some new health regulations with the six-foot spacing and how many people are allowed in the building and keeping volunteers safe,” Hubman said.
Last year the Activettes were able to provide 291 families with food hampers and gifts helping make Christmas a little brighter for more than 1,000 people.
Hubman said the Activettes are anticipating a significant increase in those needing hampers due to the pandemic.
“We’re planning for a double-digit significant increase,” Hubman said. “However, we just don’t know how many people we will get referred to us or call in for a hamper.”
The Activettes are encouraging community members to donate non-perishable food items, gift certificates to local businesses, warm clothing, warm pyjamas for all ages, toques, mittens, stuffed animals, board games, puzzles and toys, along with monetary donations. Donation boxes can be found throughout the community.
The organization is also encouraging members of the community in service industries such as those who work in nail salons, hair salons, massage therapists, yoga and so forth to donate their services as part of the hampers.
She added they are encouraging those that donate to shop local when purchasing items for the hampers, especially by purchasing gift cards for local shops and grocery stores.
“This holiday season we’re really urging people to shop in Cochrane and support our local small business owner,” Hubman said. “There’s so many options for purchasing gifts in Cochrane and we’re hoping people keep their shopping local and then we can do our best to support the community locally as well.”
Hubman has seen first hand the joy the Christmas hampers bring to families in the community.
“It’s emotional. You feel a lot of joy being able to give to people that are really in need. You feel proud of the community and all the community did to help,” Hubman said. “There’s a lot of happy tears.”
Last year Mayor Jeff Genung helped the Activettes hand out hampers over the holidays.
Genung said he was impressed with the operation describing it as a “well-oiled machine” ready to deliver Christmas spirit to those in need. The Cochrane Activettes are a crucial part of the community who are the “unsung” heroes of Cochrane, he said, describing how they rallied together and were ready to lend a helping hand with smiles on their faces.
“It was actually quite emotional for me, it was really moving,” Genung said. “To see people in need getting a leg up and a real gift at Christmas. It was special.”
Genung praised the Activettes for making the families who received hampers feel loved and important to the Cochrane community.
It will be all the more important to support the Christmas Campaign this year, he noted, because of countless people who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hubman added many of the events the Activettes typically rely on such as Light Up, The Holiday Train and Christmas Concerts have been cancelled due to COVID-19. These losses limit the amount of outreach they will have during Share Your Christmas, so they are ensuring they have more donation areas in town than ever.
Keeping the spirit of Christmas alive, Hubman said, they the annual Stuff a Bus event hosted by the Cochrane and Area Event Society will be moving forward in support of the Share Your Christmas Campaign.
For more information on donating to the Share Your Christmas Campaign visit cochraneactivettes.com or call 403-932-9290.
If you need help over the holidays call 403-519-7726.
The deadline to donate items is Dec. 14 and hampers will be handed out on Dec. 19.
