Local Families and Schools Support the Sharing Place Over Christmas
March 4, 2009 Category: Message
This Christmas The Sharing Place was blessed by our faithful supporters from across the GTA. We received many Christmas hampers and food, toy, gift, and financial donations from Nazarene churches across the TA, local churches of different denominations, and foundations like the Toronto District WCTU and the Chum charitable Foundation. But we were also blessed with new interest and support from families and schools in our community. Our new sign and word of mouth are helping neighbours of The Sharing Place learn about our 18-year old ministry. One family noticed we were having our Christmas Banquet and dropped by with a couple of bags of groceries. They told their neighbours about The Sharing Place. This resulted in another family inquiring how they could contribute to the less fortunate during the season of giving. We provided them with the list of items for our different sizes of Christmas hampers. As a family they went out shopping for the items for a family hamper. They brought the hamper in person to The sharing Place and the kids were excited to see our facilities and ask questions.
On the Thursday night before Christmas when we gave out the Christmas hampers, three students from a local High School joined us. They were collecting information, pictures, and video testimonies for a project they were doing in their Civics class. All grade 10 students at their school will present projects on various grassroots charities meeting needs in the community. One project will be selected to receive a grant from the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative sponsored by Toskan-Casale. Last year two other students did a project on The sharing Place and won $5,000 designated for our Shower / Laundry Project (see below). Early in the New Year another grade 10 student came to do some volunteer work for The Sharing Place as part of her Civics project. This young woman helped to cook and serve a chilli dinner with garlic bread and salad for 40 people on a Thursday evening at The Sharing Place.
Also before Christmas The Sharing Place was chosen as the recipient of a charity donation by a neighbourhood Montessori school. The school was looking for a charity in the community that would not ‘use up the money on administration. One of our volunteers whose daughter attends the school recommended The Sharing Place. Board member and volunteer Marion Karasiuk went to speak to the students at the school. About 80 students from grade 1 to 6 gathered in the gym to hear about the work of The Sharing Place, see some pictures, and get their questions answered. The students had fundraised $500 and presented us with a cheque again designated for the Shower / Laundry
Project. A teacher at the school has also approached us about small groups of the school’s grade 5 and 6
students doing some volunteer work at The Sharing Place.