Santa needs to step up his game for seniors in the city this Christmas.
The Burnaby Christmas Bureau is still looking for sponsorships for 50 seniors.
Each holiday season, Burnaby Community Services puts out a call to the community for the program, where seniors are matched with people who buy requested food and gifts. The items are then delivered before Dec. 25.
Last year, with the support of London Drugs, the organization was able to get a present under the tree for all the seniors who registered with the bureau. (The program helps about 200 seniors a year.)
“All the seniors got something, but it wasn’t always a lot. And we’d really like to do better this year to support them,” said Stephen D’Souza, executive director of Burnaby Community Services.
To become a sponsor, folks have to apply, either online or by mail. They’ll be contacted by someone at the bureau, who will match them with a senior in the community. The sponsor will be given a wish list, and sponsorship is $100 a person or $200 a couple, added D’Souza.
“(Items) can sometimes range, maybe a hat or a scarf, or just some regular household items a senior’s looking for, and maybe doesn’t have the disposable income to be able to get it themselves,” he told the NOW. “We see things like rice cookers on the list, or a new kettle, and sometimes we get things like particular medical equipment,like a cane.”
With the senior population only increasing, this is a section of the community “we need to pay attention to,” noted D’Souza.
“We have outreach volunteers in the community trying to connect with them, so Christmas is a great opportunity for us to make a first connection, and we hope to year-round provide support as best we can,” he said.
If people can’t help out financially, D’Souza encourages Burnaby citizens to reach out to seniors in their own neighbourhood, even if it’s just to say “Merry Christmas.”
“Sometimes that person-to-person interaction is so important. That’s why the sponsorship program isn’t just people coming in and making a donation to us. It’s about making a real connection because that’s what some seniors in our community are really missing, that human interaction and feeling that somebody still cares about them.”
Sponsorship applications will be accepted until Dec. 18. To fill out a form, visit www.tinyurl.com/SeniorSponsorApp.
Toys for girls in ‘very short supply’ this year
With Christmas less than two weeks way, organizers of the Burnaby Christmas Bureau are in “very short supply” of toys for girls aged five to 16.
“We’re looking for things like baby dolls, Easy-Bake Ovens, the Lego DC Wonder Woman,” said D’Souza. “Moving more into the teen category, (we need) blow dryers, hair straighteners, makeup, and what we’d really appreciate is gift cards to teen stores that cater more toward girls.”
Each holiday season, the Christmas Bureau helps low-income families by providing them with toys come Dec. 25. The families register for the toy room (this year, it’s inside at Metropolis at Metrotown) and then come peruse the shelves for that perfect gift.
D’Souza told the NOW toys for girls are so low he expects them to fly out the doors within the first two days. (Families can come choose their gifts starting today, Wednesday, Dec. 13.)
“That means we’ll have another week of pick-up where it’ll be a lot thinner pickings,” he said.
Overall, the total number of toys donated this year seems to be “OK,” but that’s only because the disproportionate number of boy toys to girl toys.
“I think there’s been so many exciting things for boys in the last couple of years, and Star Wars is really popular, that everyone’s kind of gone to that; and yes, girls do take from the Star Wars (toys), so we do like to have some traditional girl toys for those who are looking for those items,” said D’Souza.
Toy donations will be accepted until Dec. 21 (on Mondays and Saturdays). The toy room is located in the upper level of the mall, between Winners and Big Orange Juice Bar.
Folks can also donate online, added D’Souza, at www.tinyurl.com/BureauDonation.
“We use that money to help fill some of these gaps. We bought quite a few gift cards for teens; we’re also using some of that money this year to buy some items for our seniors’ hampers to make sure seniors get everything,” he said.
So far this year, $86,450 has been raised in cash donations. The goal is to hit $100,000, money that will also go toward other programs at Burnaby Community Services that help people break the cycle of poverty.
Last year, the bureau was in need of toys for teens and toddlers. There was a 25 per cent decrease in donations in those two categories.
For more information, call 604-299-5778 or stop by the Burnaby Community Services office at 2055 Rosser Ave.
For a full list of toy ideas for all age groups, visit www.tinyurl.com/ToyIdeas.
