Update!

We’ve nearly reached our goal for the Christmas Hamper

Have a look at the list below and see what’s left. (Just so you know, if you’re worried that your contribution will get to me on time, Amazon is killing it with delivery. I got one of your donations the very next day.)

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I love this time of year, mostly.

Everyone’s in a good mood, you hear stories of random people paying for coffees and groceries. But I get a bit grumpy, I have to say. I’ve been giving it a think and believe it boils down to childhood. What a surprise, right?

Growing up in a stressful situation with not enough food on the table, or clothes to wear is hard on families. Throw single motherhood into the mix and well, I can’t imagine how hard it would be.

My mom raised three girls by herself and it wasn’t fun a lot of the time for her. For the most part my sisters and I were oblivious to it, at least when we were really young. But without support from our dad, my mom just barely kept her head above water.

When I think about how fortunate I am to have my little family in tact, well, I count my blessings. Still, I can’t help but think of how challenging it would be if I were in my mom’s shoes. And if I was living in Vancouver, with the highest cost of living in the country I don’t know how I would do it. It is tough to get ahead with two incomes in this city, never mind one and certainly not when you are a low-income single mom.

Support a Local Family in Need

With the Syrian refugee crisis on the minds and in the hearts of many, I understand how it might be tempting to place all the focus for charitable giving with this important issue. It is critical we help them overcome some of the stress of moving to Canada, a place very foreign and scary to some, leaving their home and sometimes family behind.

And we should help them.

Having said that, I’ve always believed in taking care of those closest to us first, whether it means reaching out to heal relationships with family or to extend the little bit extra we have to those in our own community.

That’s why I’ve chosen to help a local Canadian family this Christmas. I’ve specifically chosen a low-income single mom because my mom was in her shoes once. And then I thought rather than do this myself with my family, I wanted to extend it to you, my dear family of readers, to get in on the Christmas spirit. It takes a community to raise a child, and a community to support single moms in this city.

So let’s put our heads together and make this Christmas a time to reach out, show more love and concern for the people who may be living right next door.

I am putting together a Christmas hamper to be delivered to a family living in downtown core on or before December 21st. It’s a tight timeline, but I know I can do it with your help.

And I’ve made it easy for you to support this cause.

What follows is a bit of information about the family, their Christmas list and links to purchase items from their list. It’s going to feel so good to make a difference in this family’s life.

Get to know my sponsor family, Sonya and Timothy

*Sonya is a single mom, 39, of a 7 month old boy *Timothy.

I live in the West End and love the outdoors, and before I was pregnant, hiked regularly in the mountains on the North Shore. I also had a daily yoga practice and enjoy reading and practicing yogic philosophy which includes a daily meditation – although I rarely have time for any of that nowadays! I enjoy good nutrition and vegetarian cooking, and my passion is photography. I also love film, TV, and theatre. Timothy seems to have a keen ear for music because whenever I turn something on, he stops and listens to it for hours. We enjoy singing songs together, and attend as many music programs at the West End Community Centre as we can. Timothy also particularly loves his swimming lessons at the Aquatic Centre – everyone tells him what a star he is in the water!

Christmas Wish List

Sonya has a wish list but it’s small. I have added a few things that I thought she might like, things she might not buy for herself right now. They would make me happy if I were her so that’s what I’m going with. There are lots of choices to suit any budget of course.

Donated! Grocery Gift Cards

Sonya says,

I live in the west end so the 3 grocery stores that are within walking distance are: No Frills, Safeway, and Whole Foods. I usually shop strategically and look for sale items – Whole Foods is known to be more expensive, but very often they have sales on items that make them less expensive than Safeway and No Frills – for example, Greek Yogurt is always on sale at Whole Foods, and on Tuesdays they have 2 for 1 pizzas for $10 which is at least 4 meals for me. No Frills generally has the best everyday deals, whereas Safeway can be the most expensive but it’s right across the road from where we live and very convenient. There is also a Shoppers Drug Mart 1.5 blocks away, and I go to the London Drugs on Davie Street often to order photos.

Here are links to two of the stores Sonya mentioned. You can purchase gift certificates directly on-line and ship them to my address to be included in the hamper.

Donated! Whole Foods ~  purchase a gift card We’ve had $100 in donated gift cards so far but we can always use more!

Donated! Safeway ~ Call to purchase gift cards. 1-800-723-3929

Donated! Shoppers Drug Mart

Donated! Portable Bluetooth Speaker ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

My baby and I love to play and listen to music first thing in the morning, and we’ve been using my lap top for sound. I would love to have some speakers of some kind to wirelessly stream music through. I know that these can be expensive, so I wouldn’t mind if they were refurbished, or even 2nd hand!

This is the one I would choose however there are so many models that would do nicely. Have a look over at the store and see what you think.

Donated! Remote control for the Nikon D3200 Camera ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

Because it’s just me and my baby, I have many photos of just him, but hardly any of the two of us together. I was given a Nikon D3200 camera several years ago, and if I could get a remote control for it, it would perhaps set us up to get some great photos of us together (that aren’t selfies and that he’ll be proud of when he’s older)! The remote that works with my camera is the NIKON ML-L3 WIRELESS REMOTE, but if there is another brand that matches my camera just as well, I would be equally happy with that.

 

You can purchase this item through my Amazon Store here. (By the way, any commissions I make on purchases made for this family will go directly to the family.)

Clothing ~ {Various Websites}

Sonya hasn’t asked for clothing but I thought I would include some for Timothy just in case.

Timothy is 7 months old but he wears a size 12 infant so he’s a big boy. It would be tempting then to buy bigger sizes however winter is coming and he’ll need to stay warm and dry. And cute! 

If you like you can buy gift certificates at Children’s Place, H & M, or Baby Gap Old along with a few warm items and have them shipped directly to me so I can include them in the hamper.

This is a cute baby model, not Timothy.

Sonya wears a size 4-6 and her shoe size is 7. There are some really cute things over at Old Navy.

Lodge Dutch Oven ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

I love to cook and have a mini (12 cm) Le Creuset Dutch Oven. I’ve been using this lately to cook apples which I make into apple sauce and give to my little one for breakfast. Now that there are two of us in the family however and he’s only going to keep getting bigger, I will be needing a dutch over that is slightly larger – a MEDIUM SIZE DUTCH OVEN would be ideal, although it obviously doesn’t have to be Le Creuset.

 

The one pictured above is $96.00 plus tax. There are other models in the Amazon store too.

Pfaltzgraff Dinnerware Set ~ {Website}

Sonya says,

Years ago I was given a Pfaltzgraff (Yorketowne) dinnerware set for 4, and since then several pieces have broken. I’m slowly trying to work that set back up again and am still missing the following pieces:

2 oz Soup Cereal Bowls (x2)
6 3/4 inch Salad Plates (x3)
8 5/8 inch Luncheon Plates:  set of 4

I’ve created a wishlist HERE to make it easy to get these items for Sonya. There are other items you can get for her and Timothy as well if they’ve been purchased by someone else.

Donated! DVD Player ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

I would like a very basic DVD PLAYER that is small and compact. I don’t want anything fancy or expensive – the Phillips 1080p DVD Player is just an example of what I am looking for.

I couldn’t find that model but I did find a Samsung that is about the same price.

 

Countdown to Christmas Advent Calendar ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

“Melissa and Doug” make a very nice one that I’ve seen at Chapters and at Whole Foods, although I believe there are several different companies that make very similar ones.

Donated! Sit to Stand Learning Walker ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

I’m told by friends who have children that some sort of Sit-To-Stand Learning Walker is one of the best toys their babies have ever received. Apparently VTech makes 2 very good ones: “VTech Sit-To-Stand Learning Walker” ($30) and “VTech” Sit-To-Stand Ultimate Alphabet Train ($38)

Some Donated! Books ~ {Amazon}

Sonya says,

There are several books that I would love for Timothy to have:

“What a Wonderful World” by Bob Thiele & George David Weiss

“Giraffes Can’t Dance” by Giles Andreas & Guy Parker-Rees

Donated! “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom” by Bill Martin & John Archambault

Donated! “Dear Zoo” by Rod Campbell

If you have other book ideas please visit the Amazon store and make your selections. And with 2-day shipping I’ll get them quickly! Don’t know what to get? You can also purchase gift certificates too. 

That’s her list. What do you say? Can we make this happen?

All Christmas hamper items must arrive at my home on or before the afternoon of Monday, December 21st as that is delivery day. If you need to drop items off, let me know and I’ll be happy to arrange that with you.

Please read this before purchasing anything for this family.

In order for this hamper to meet the ‘ideal standard’ set for the YWCA program there is a suggested minimum purchase

1. Grocery gift cards: In order to create special meals for herself and Timothy over the holidays we don’t want her to worry about the cost. We’d like to provide a minimum of $100 in groceries, which can be bought in any denomination you wish.
2. Gifts and/or gift cards: The YWCA suggests $100 per family member.
3. Gifts should always be new. Please include a gift receipt so Sonya can exchange them if needed.
4. If at all possible, please wrap all gifts before sending to me. If you are purchasing items online you may be able to request that they be wrapped. If that isn’t possible, I will wrap them for you. 
5. Please don’t include alcohol.

Send Gifts to this Address

Send your gifts to my address so that it arrives before the 21st of December. That is a Monday and Canada Post is so slow! If you order through Amazon however it will get to me lickety split, depending on the item!

502-151 W 1st Ave

Vancouver, BC V5Y 0A5

By the way, in order to keep it fair for all the families, any donations that exceed the suggested amounts listed above will be donated to the YWCA Simplify the Season Holiday Wish List. 

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Thank you so much for reading!  I hope that you will find it in your heart to help me make this Christmas extra special for Sonya and Timothy.

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About the Presents of Peace program

YWCA Metro Vancouver is committed to advancement of women, girls and children. A key advocacy priority is raising awareness on the inappropriate sexualization of young girls which is prevalent in mainstream media, music, games and even toys for young girls. We kindly ask you to consider this when doing your Christmas shopping and ensure the toys you buy are age appropriate and positively represent women and girls.

Tax Receipts

As a YWCA donor you are entitled to receive a tax receipt for all the new items before taxes (including gift cards) that you purchase for your Presents of Peace gift hamper.

Please remember that if you are going to be requesting a tax receipt for your purchases, you will need to submit the original till receipts by January 23^rd, 2016 (please see attached document for more information on tax receipts).

1. Support YWCA Emergency Food Vouchers:  Since 1984, hundreds of low-income mothers and children have received $10 food vouchers to help make ends meet. The YWCA is able to purchase food vouchers in bulk at a discount, which makes your financial support stretch a little further.
2. Donate to YWCA Crabtree Corner:  Help women and children living in poverty in the Downtown Eastside. Cash donations to Crabtree Corner support a daily drop in lunch program, parenting groups, a Fetal Alcohol Syndrome prevention program, temporary housing and Vancouver’s only free, drop-in child care centre.

Donate now. or send by mail to:

YWCA Metro Vancouver

Presents of Peace

535 Hornby Street

Vancouver, BC  V6C 2E8

The family’s names have been changed to protect their privacy.