The sudden and out of the ordinary snow accumulation experienced on the Coast made for an interesting year at the Elves Club depot.
Volunteer Jacquie Braun said school closures meant that a tradition of elementary school students filling vegetable bags ended.
"One of the volunteers who walks the children over every year told her spouse [that the schools were closed] and he brought his entire staff over and some of them brought their kids. Because they were adults, we were done early. They even built all of the boxes before they left," Braun said.
Braun had the gymnasium of the Christian Life Assembly Church lined with hamper boxes for 706 families. A small group of volunteers was available on Friday to fill them with food and presents and then mark each box for its destination.
"We wanted to do Christmas differently this year," volunteer Sheri Clough said. "Generations are so different now," she laughed and said her four children, aged 11 to 19, enjoyed the experience. Clough said it was important to her husband and her to have their kids see the reality of poverty on the Coast.
The Elves Club has become a family event for the Brauns too. Daughter Jennifer co-ordinated the toy collection and organization at the depot."We came from Winnipeg in 1980 when I was one and a half," Jennifer said recalling how she spent her first few years doing nothing but climbing around in the boxes. "[Elves Club] was here before I was helpful and now I try to be helpful."
Jennifer and Linda Klausen divided the Coast between them and each counted more than 1,000 people who would receive gifts in the hampers. Infants to seniors numbered their lists. Jennifer had 35 infants on her list alone.
The snow slowed the process down and might have kept a few volunteers away, but when the toy truck arrived, the energy level picked up again as Elves brought box after box and Christmas tree after tree into the church to be dispersed among the needy on Saturday, Dec. 20.
