Holiday Charities in St. Albert

St. Albert has a wide variety of charities that operate year-round, but in December, the month of giving, these charities come out in full force. If you’re looking to volunteer some of your time or money to help spread the holiday cheer to the less fortunate, here are some organizations that you should be aware of:

St. Albert Community Village & St. Albert Food Bank

The St. Albert food bank had its first food drive last Saturday, December 3^rd, but its holiday plans aren’t over yet. The food bank is taking food donations all month long in preparation for the Christmas season, and has volunteer positions available to help sort and package all the Christmas hampers. For contact information, visit their website here.

Next door at the Community Village, volunteers from the community will be running their regular Cultural Kitchen event, with a special “Round the World Holiday Potluck” on December 13^th. The Cultural Kitchen aims to strengthen community bonds though shared food and conversation. To find out more about these initiatives, click here.

St. Albert CIVC

St. Albert CIVC has been organizing volunteer groups in the city for decades, and as part of its regular December activities, it gathers volunteers to help spread the Christmas cheer. Volunteers are needed to help with a number of initiatives, including the sorting and packaging of Christmas hampers from now until the 18^th and hamper deliveries on December 18^th. For more information, visit their website here.

St. Albert Salvation Army

You’ve probably seen the St. Albert branch of the Salvation Army around town already, ringing their bells and collecting money for the organization’s various charity events, but they’re more active than that.  The Salvation Army collects toy donations to help make Christmas a little brighter for disadvantaged children. Donations can be dropped off during early December in the parking lot of the St. Albert Walmart.

But children aren’t the only ones who need holiday cheer. As part of the “Sunshine Bags” initiative, volunteers visit those spending the holidays in hospitals, seniors’ homes and similar institutions to bring them gifts and a bit of conversation to help brighten their days.

Lastly is the annual Community Christmas Dinner, co-hosted by the Salvation Army, the Community Village and the Rotary Club of St Albert. For volunteer information, or just to find out more, visit their website here.

Kinette Club of St. Albert

The Kinettes of St. Albert have been serving our community for 50 years now, and are able to help hundreds of families every year through their annual Christmas food drives. The Kinettes are asking for donations of cash, food and toys, as well as volunteers to help them organize donations and help with their “Fill-a-Bus” event on December 10^th. To find out more about how you can get involved, you can visit their website here. To read more about the amazing work that the Kinettes have been doing over the last half-century, click here.