Spaghetti dinner raises over $1,500 for Christmas Hampers program

Written By MARNI WALSH

About 70 dinner guests defied the first snow storm of the season on November 15th to join friends and neighbours over spaghetti in an effort to raise much needed funds for the Shelburne Christmas Hamper Program.

Hamper Program Chair Bobbi Ferguson says a steady stream of people attended the event to raise “in excess of $1500.” “I would say the snow did affect things a bit, as there were a number of reserved tickets not claimed, but we are still very happy with how many braved the weather. It was a large undertaking made very easy by many volunteers and generous donators.”

Shelburne Christmas Hampers is run by the service clubs of Shelburne to assist local families with the extra constraints of the Holiday season. The program is open to qualified families, couples, singles and seniors. Each applicant receives hampers of food, grocery gift cards to purchase a turkey, ham or holiday specialty food, gift cards for children aged 12 to 18 years, and toys for children under 12 years, as well as many other necessary and holiday items.

There were a number of raffle prizes at the pasta dinner, and the service clubs send out a big “thank you” to all who donated. Ed Aukema won the “Spaghetti” version of ‘Chase the Ace,' which he generously donated back to the Christmas Hampers. Len Guchardi entertained dinner guests with Italian music, providing ambiance to the evening's Italian bistro theme.

Ferguson says the highlight of the evening was that it “brought us all together as a community.” She says, “Spaghetti eaters from the Kinsmen, Kinettes, Lions, Rotary, Legion, Churches, Food Bank, Town Council, EDC, and many others who just wanted to support this great cause, came out to make sure it was a success. The money raised will go a long way to make sure the Hamper Program is well funded.”

The next Hamper event, “Jingle Jam,” featuring the band “Little Current,” will be held Friday, November 23rd at 9:00 p.m. in Duffy's Pub on Main Street across from the Town Hall. The service clubs ask that attendees bring a non-perishable food item, or a personal care item, such as body wash or shampoo, to donate for the hampers. There is no cover charge, but cash donations will gratefully be accepted.

Anyone wishing to register for a hamper can do so on November 22nd from 7pm to 9pm, November 28th and December 5th from 11 am to 1pm at the Mel Lloyd Centre Community Meeting Room, Entrance C, on the second floor. (Please bring ID for all members living in household, proof of income and expenditures for all members.)

For those wishing to donate, non-perishable food items and toys for children are still needed. Monetary donations are also needed to purchase grocery gift cards and gift cards for those aged 12 to 18 years. Cheques can be mailed to Shelburne Christmas Hampers co Rotary Club of Shelburne PO Box 27 Stn Main, Shelburne, ON L9V 3L8. Donation boxes can be found at the Town Hall, RBC, Pace Credit Union, Arena, Caravaggio IDA, and at the Mel Lloyd Centre from December 19th to 21st.

On behalf of the service clubs of Shelburne, Bobbi Ferguson would like to “thank the residents of our town for their incredible support of this program that has been helping families for over 50 years. Thank you for your generosity, and we wish you all the best for the Holiday Season.”