NEWS RELEASE
BARRIE & DISTRICT CHRISTMAS CHEER
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As we head into the first week of December, board members of Barrie & District Christmas Cheer are very concerned that donations are dangerously low at this stage of the campaign. Christmas Cheer is currently sitting at $64,100 raised which is a far cry from their ultimate goal of raising $250,000.
Online applications are coming in rapidly. And Christmas Cheer has anticipated that the need in 2021 will be much higher than in previous years as the cost of living has greatly increased since the pandemic hit and with the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), now coming to an end for a lot of their clients.
“Since our applicants need to shop for their own food this year, and with food costs up nearly three per cent over last year, we encourage people who are planning on donating, to do so as early as possible so that we’re able to increase the gift card amounts to cover the cost of inflation," says Cindy Tonn, president of Barrie & District Christmas Cheer
The organization is accepting cash donations only this year, which can be made directly through their website, or by texting the word: CHEER to 30333 (donation amount will be added to your wireless phone bill).
Barrie & District Christmas Cheer is an organization that depends heavily on the generosity of the community, local business owners and corporate sponsors in order to ensure that nearly 1,700 families in Barrie, Innisfil, Angus, Oro-Medonte and surrounding area have a magical Christmas morning.
Barrie & District Christmas Cheer wants the community to know that they are deeply committed to running their campaign safely, and will exhaust all efforts to make sure all families in the community wake up to food and toys on Christmas morning.
For more information about Barrie and District Christmas Cheer, to donate, or to find out how to set up a personal online fundraising page, please visit their website here.
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