Founded in 2011, the North Hastings Holiday Hamper Program (formerly known as The Turkey Buck Program) has become a cornerstone name for the Bancroft community during the Christmas Holiday Season. From what started as a humble offer of assistance to those in need, a concept was born…
Mother/daughter duo Krystal Townsend and Heather Sararas answered a call to action in 2011 while volunteering for the Salvation Army Christmas Assistance Program. The duo had discovered that two local families had missed the deadline to apply for assistance which at the time included food staples and a few age and gender specific toys chosen by the volunteers. The same families had also missed out on other social programs in the community and faced the stark reality that they may be out of options.
“I looked at my mom and asked if she had any spare turkey bucks to add to the 4 I had collected from grocery shopping. I put a post out on Facebook looking for those who could spare extra turkey bucks too”. said Krystal.
“The posts gained steam and before we knew it we had enough for 5 turkeys and even some donated cash that we used to purchase potatoes and butter!”
Not much has changed in the way things run for the organization. We are still 100% volunteer based and all donations are used to help the local community.
NHHHP became a registered charity under the Canada Revenue Agency in 2020. Having charitable status provides the ability to provide tax receipt for all donations. It also allows for additional fundraising opportunities through both Local and Provincially controlled licensing (50/50 draws, raffles etc).
Since its inception in 2011, NHHHP has provided hundreds of Full Holiday meals to the community. The program runs solely on donations made by the generous community members of Bancroft and numerous businesses alike. The application process is simple, offers choices and most of all it provides the opportunity for families to share in the act of preparing their festive meals together.