Halloween is done; prep for Christmas begins at Cheer Board and Salvation Army

Manitoba charities are getting ready for a busy holiday season. Daniel Halmarson reports.

The Christmas Cheer Board of Winnipeg is ramping up for the season of giving with pallets of food and piles of presents.

“We’ve been preparing for the last month and a half to get the space up and running for the holiday season,” Shawna Bell, the Cheer Board’s executive director, told CTV News on Monday. “Next thing you know, we’ll be opening our doors and opening our phone lines.”

According to Food Banks Canada’s annual HungerCounts report, Manitobans made nearly 65,000 trips to food banks in March – a 17 per cent jump from March 2024.

Bell said that could mean another record-breaking year for the Christmas Cheer Board which dished out more than 21,000 hampers to people in Winnipeg last December.

“Day-to-day, we’re going to receive probably between 500 and 600 hamper applications, and [when] you multiple that over the course of around 32 days, it becomes pretty significant,” Bell said.

Bell said seniors who live alone, newcomer families, and parents who just need a little help over the holidays top the list of applicants.

“There’s no formula behind who’s in need, but it’s just an opportunity for us to be able to help them out and give them a little bit of a lift up at what can be a really challenging time of the year.”

Phone lines to apply for a hamper open on Tuesday morning.

People on income assistance can call 204-948-2022 between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday.

Low-income residents, pensioners, students and new Canadians can call 204-989-5683 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays.

The Christmas Cheer Board is also looking for donation and volunteers. Information is available on its website.

The Salvation Army is also getting into the holiday spirit. Registration for the charity’s Toy Mountain launched Monday morning.

Parents can visit Salvation Army’s registration website or call 204-946-9491 on weekdays to sign up their children.

“You don’t have to be faced with these impossible choices to pay rent or buy Christmas gifts,” Kristin Marand, The Salvation Army’s communications manager, told CTV News. “We can help you at least with a little bit of some of those things.”

Every year, the organization collects new and unwrapped toys by donation so every kid has a gift to open.

“The parents are so grateful to be able to have that experience,” Marand said. “To take those things home and wrap them for their kids just like any other parent would.”

The Salvation Army is also busy planning for a very busy Christmas dinner at its Centre of Hope on December 18th.

“There will be several different seatings throughout the evening,” Marand explained. “And we’re expecting to feed 2,000 people this year, which is about 500 more than last year.”