Truckloads Donated To Food & Toy Drive
It’s beginning to FEEL a lot like Christmas in Chatham-Kent!
The snow may not be on the ground; and for many that’s a darn good thing, but the local Christmas spirit was on full display this past weekend at Sears Dealer Store.
The Caldwell family, owners and managers at Sears Dealer Store, 705 St. Clair St., Chatham have held their annual Food & Toy Drive for the last 5 years and counting. And for the fourth year, one of Santa’s favourite elves showed up to save the day!
Yvette Roper, along with her son Remy and her niece in tow, arrived on scene in their own version of a high tech Christmas sleigh – a full powered pick-up truck loaded to the brim with a box full of toy and food donations to be donated to the local Salvation Army and Outreach For Hunger.
As if one truckload wasn’t enough, upon their delivery, Roper and her helpers fled the scene to their own workshop to collect the second set of donations.
“This woman absolutely blows me away,” remarked Ed Caldwall of the Dealer Store. “This is what Christmas spirit is all about.”
“We want every child locally to be able to wake up with that big Christmas smile this year and every year,” said Roper when asked about her giving spirit. “To be able to teach my family how important is to give back and help others at the same time is a blessing.”
Yvette’s secret to her Christmas success story? She puts away a few dollars ($40) from each paycheque through the year and picks up new toys on sale whenever she comes across them. Once Christmas gets here, the difference one person can make is shown to be truly incredible.
The donations of Roper and her crew alone filled a good portion of the Crime Stoppers trailer on scene at the store. Donations will continue to be accepted through the coming weeks leading up to the big guy’s visit to Chatham-Kent on Christmas Eve.
We’re sure he’ll leave a nice extra gift for some of his favourite helpers once again this year.
