The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Jonathon Naylor Editor Call it Santa's work, the Lord's work or simply a kind gesture. Whatever the case, the Elks Club, Salvation Army and Friendship Centre filled an important void this holiday season. The organizations supplied food and toys to hundreds of area residents suffering financial hardship during what should be the best time of the year. 'Grateful' 'People are just very thankful, very grateful to be able to receive some help this time of year,' says Cpt. B.J. Loder of the Salvation Army. 'You can see that a lot of these people don't have a lot, so when you see the impact you're having just by bringing (food and gifts) to the door, (it's) rewarding.' A few days before Christmas, Cpt. Loder and volunteers from the church delivered nearly 100 hampers full of food and children's gifts to residents in Flin Flon, Creighton, Denare Beach, Cranberry Portage and Sherridon. The hampers were filled with items purchased with the close to $10,000 in coins and bills collected during the church's trademark bell-ringing canvass. Meanwhile, the Elks Club distributed 128 food hampers in Flin Flon and Creighton, the most in recent memory. Exalted Ruler Gord Evans said demand was up about 20 per cent over 2011, and he's not sure why. An unusually high number of single people, 67, received a hamper to help fill their fridges and cupboards. Making a difference Evans enjoys helping everyone but gleans the most satisfaction from making a difference in the lives of children. 'I just love feeding kids. I hate people starving,' he says. Elks Hall looked like Santa's workshop a few days before Christmas as eager volunteers swiftly assembled the food hampers. Children's gifts for needy area families were also collected by the Friendship Centre. Parents were invited to stop by Elks Hall to pick out gifts for their kids. 'The program is aimed at enabling parents to give their children a gift at Christmas when circumstances may otherwise prevent them from doing so,' Chris Merasty, program / event coordinator for the Friendship Centre, said in a recent letter to the editor. 'The goal is to provide a gift, barrier-free, to a child and family in need.'
