Help Sun Youth gear up for the holidays
Here at Sun Youth
Nicolas Carpentier
Again this year, thousands of Montreal families will turn to Sun Youth to find comfort for the Holidays. Some of these families registered for a Christmas basket as early as September, while others will do so in the coming weeks. Sun Youth needs your support to assist all these people with Christmas or Chanukah baskets. For those who can, now is the time to help.
Sun Youth is a veteran in assisting Montreal families with Christmas baskets. Before establishing our permanent food bank in 1981, our organization was already distributing Holiday hampers to hundreds of low-income families in the neighbourhood. As years went by, Sun Youth assisted more and more families during this crucial time of year. This year, between December 18 and December 24, our organization will distribute Christmas Baskets to approximately 10,000 families and give brand new toys to 13,000 deserving children.
Our Christmas baskets are prepared in advance at our warehouse on de Gaspé, and filled with non-perishable food donations received from the public and corporations. The baskets are then shipped to our headquarters on a daily basis as of December 18. We invite companies and partners who assist us year-round to help us distribute the baskets. Perishable food items are added to the baskets. The quantity of food families receive differs depending on how many people are in the family. The perishable food items, such as milk, eggs and meat, are purchased with donations from the public and the private sectors.
People wishing to collect food or money for Sun Youth are more than welcome to do so. We can provide posters, piggy banks, collection boxes and other promotional material to those interested in helping us make this season brighter for families in need. Pickups are available for large quantities of food and tax receipts can be issued for monetary donations.
There is still time for families in need to register for a Christmas or Chanukah basket. Our offices are open Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4 pm. People who want to register for a basket need to bring a proof of income and proof of address, as well as the Medicare cards of all people living with them. After registration is complete, clients receive an appointment card showing when to pick-up their basket. Identification cards are also required on distribution day. Families and individuals are entitled to only one basket per household. Every year, a central index is put in place for all of the organizations that distribute Holiday baskets to make sure families do not receive food from multiple organizations.
