Day 7 of our 12 Days of Gift Giving ideas bring us to helping others! We’ve been hearing kids wanting to choose a charity and donate money instead of receiving presents for Christmas from their parents. In the spirit of giving back, here’s 8 places in the ‘hood that need volunteers or donations to help others in need throughout the year.
Hastings Sunrise Community Policing Centre – Volunteer or Donate
The HSCPC is a volunteer-driven hub that is there to help residents and merchants deal with crime and safety concerns, clean up trash and unwanted graffiti, promote the safety of young and old, and lead the way toward a better Hastings Sunrise for all.
Frog Hollow Neighbourhood House – Donate Directly – Frames Film Project
The Frames Film Program is an off-site program of Frog Hollow Neighbourhood House. As a Vancouver-based film production and life skills program, it provides opportunities for youth (ages 16 – 30) to learn the basics of filmmaking in a supportive, safe and fun environment— at no cost. Operating out of East Vancouver’s Drive Youth Employment Services (D-YES), multi-barriered (ie. mental health, homelessness, unemployment) receive support from a full youth Case Management Team, a Frames’ Social Worker and Film Instructor. Each ten week cycle involves weekly lessons and two shooting and editing weekends, where participants gain life and employment skills, industry knowledge from guest speakers, and technical filmmaking skills
Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau – Donate
The Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau (LMCB) was originally established in 1930 as the Christmas Exchange. Today it serves as a centralized, year round toy warehouse for toys to be gathered, sorted, stored and shipped to Christmas Bureaus and Community agencies across the entire metro Vancouver area. In an average year the Christmas Bureau ship approximately 100,000 items including toys, clothes and food vouchers to over a 1000 low income families in Vancouver during the holidays.
Kiwassa Neighbourhood House – Donate
Kiwassa is a multi-service community agency that has been providing a broad range of free or low cost social services and programs to children, youth, adults, seniors and families in East Vancouver for 60 years. Kiwassa works in partnership with residents, community agencies, businesses, government and non-government organizations, using a community development and capacity building approach to identify and respond to community needs.
The Kettle Society – Donate
The Kettle provides over 3,600 individuals with 26 services, a mental health drop-in, a transition house for women and over 200 units of supported housing. The Kettle is committed to practical and non-judgemental harm reduction strategies in all its work, as it has been for over 35 years. They have a holistic approach that views physical, mental and spiritual aspects of life as interconnected and equally important.
Quest Outreach Society – Donate your Time | Food | Money
Quest assists individuals each month through partnerships with local social service agencies by providing their clients with access to our not-for-profit grocery markets and by delivering raw food materials to agencies for their own meal programs. In this manner, those helping Quest are also helping hundreds of other agencies and their clients.
A Loving Spoonful – Volunteer or Donate
A Loving Spoonful is a volunteer-driven, non-partisan Society that provides free, nutritious meals to people living with HIV/AIDS in Greater Vancouver. Every week, all year round for over 19 years, their volunteers deliver approximately 1200 frozen meals and over 250 snack packs to men, women and children who are primarily homebound with AIDS. Our average meal cost is only $3.55. A Loving Spoonful is the constant support of over 250 adults and children living with HIV/AIDS throughout the Greater Vancouver area.
Aboriginal Mother Centre Society – Donate
Dedicated to moving mothers and children at risk off the streets The Aboriginal Mother Centre Society provide under all the support, tools and resources a mother needs to rebuild her health, self esteem and skills to regain and retain her child. The centre creates a healing community to nurture children and families to become vital members of their communities.