Three days before Christmas, Maritimes malls were packed and grocery stores were busy. While some Maritimers felt prepared, the crunch was still on for last minute shopping. “Better than last year. I have been out of the 24th before,” says David Aylmer, who was at the Halifax Shopping Centre. “I have to shop and gather food and just get together with my family,” says Allyson Mckinnon. While some say they are ready, many are feeling the pressure. “The bread for the stuffing is drying, and we will cook up a big turnkey but as for us it’s last-minute things for the kids that they asked for three days before Christmas,” says Sarah Croston. The Gateway Meat Market in Dartmouth, N.S., was busy on Monday as well. “Before we open these doors, the shelves are jammed full and we are filling constantly throughout the day and we will stay busy right up until Christmas Eve and we are one of the only grocery stores open on Boxing Day the 26th so we expect that to be fairly busy," says Tamara McKay, Gateway Meat Market social media and PR manager. “You need to budget your groceries because you are also getting Christmas gifts and people are taking extra time off work so all of that adds up to people really looking for discounts where they can get them and to be honest with you we see an even bigger peak in January when people are recovering from the holidays.” Souls Harbour Rescue Mission staff are busy unpacking donation boxes and preparing to feed the need across their nine locations. Their Christmas meals start on Tuesday and they will also have dinners on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve. “Christmas Day is our Halifax location, and we have done a traditional chowder day every Christmas for 14 years and on the 31st we have our big Christmas dinner in Halifax,” says Michelle Porter, Souls Harbour Rescue Mission CEO. They will also be handing out stockings filled with hygiene items and small comforts like notebooks and silly putty. They are still accepting donations both in person and online. “We give out thousands of stockings, and the demand this year has grown simply because of the location expansion and our mobile mission. The Soul’s mobile can also give out blessing bags and stockings,” says Porter.
