A local project is helping Golden families have a brighter Christmas this holiday season.
For the fourth year, Adopt a Family is collecting donations to give as many families as possible a merry Christmas.
“This year, we’ve changed it up. It’s going to be by cash donation or gift certificate only,” said Mike Pecora, one of the project’s organizers.
In the past, people have been able to donate gifts as well as funds. But this year, they are trying to make it easier for both the donors and the businesses.
“Each of these businesses has the Adopt a Family jar, so you can drop your coins or whatever in there,” said Pecora. So, for example, you can come into my business (Elite Nutrition), and drop coins in this jar. When the jars get cracked to find out how much is in there, my store now puts in a gift certificate for that amount. So the money from that jar stays at that business.”
The gift certificates will then be divvied up between the families. This year, Adopt a Family is hoping to make contributions to eight families. When they first began, they helped two, and last year they helped six. It has slowly been getting bigger every year.
“It’s evolved each year to be more user-friendly, while also getting out to more and more families,” said Pecora. “Half of the families are picked from the Women’s Centre, and the other half are picked from the Family Centre. The families are completely anonymous. I don’t even know who they are. The only person who finds out is Santa Claus.”
Sponsors include EZ Rock, Sobey’s, DJ’s Paper Place, the Fire Pit BBQ Smokehouse, Freenergy, The Golden Star, Overwaitea Foods, Fields, Elite Nutrition, and Rockies Dollar Shop Plus.
“We’re keeping it simple, and keeping it local. And we’re hopefully going to make several families have a merry Christmas,” said Pecora.
