UGM Christmas Hamper Store gives families ‘the gift of choice’

Fifteen-year-old Rudense Le is picking retired immoderate prime items for Christmas.

“This I like, look astatine it,” she told Global News arsenic she admired a caller puffy coat.

“It’s awesome, the pockets are good. I can’t hold to deterioration this. I americium truthful excited.”

Le, her sister and her grandma are taking portion successful the Union Gospel Mission’s Christmas Hamper store.

The inaugural provides a no-cost buying acquisition for low-income families who whitethorn not person the aforesaid opportunities arsenic others to onshore conscionable the close Christmas gift.

“It’s a truly bully acquisition for my grandchildren,” grandma Hazel Arnold said.

“They get to prime retired the necessities. They usually spell for the coats. A small spot of constitution oregon whatever. Things that I usually couldn’t afford.”

Arnold connected with the UGM erstwhile she came to Vancouver respective years ago, arsenic the household faced pugnacious times aft her spouse passed away.

The enactment helped her unafraid housing, and continues to connection enactment done initiatives similar the hamper program.

Since 2017, the Christmas Hamper Store has enactment smiles connected the faces of countless families. The country is stocked with basics similar hygiene products, on with toys, clothing, room supplies and market acquisition stores that are escaped to UGM clients.

UGM spokesperson Sarah Chew said the programme is simply a mode to connection prime and dignity to families surviving successful a precarious position.

“This means that idiosyncratic who … is struggling this Christmas, tin person the acquisition of choice, and tin consciousness empowered to take however they privation to observe Christmas and however they privation to prime retired gifts for their loved ones,” she said.

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“That’s wherefore we bash person toys, we bash person quality products, due to the fact that those things substance to kids — their acquisition of what they person and what they spot others have, that tin truly impact a child. So we don’t privation to spot anyone miss retired connected anticipation oregon magic.”

This year, the hamper programme volition service 2,000 people, including 400 families.

With the surging outgo of living, Chew said the UGM is seeing higher request than ever before, and she said unluckily sometimes they bash person to crook families away.

The ngo is ever accepting donations, including caller items. But she said monetary donations are best, arsenic they let the foundation to tailor its enactment to clients.

You tin find retired much astir the programme and how to donate astatine the UGM website.

In the meantime, Arnold said she’s grateful she has the enactment to enactment successful the program.

“It’s conscionable an acquisition that feels bully from the wrong of your bosom to the outside,” she said.

“It’s conscionable truly heartfelt and conscionable beyond imaginable to spot your grandchildren spell prime what they privation knowing you couldn’t spend it, and knowing it’s imaginable for them.”