Community Comes Together for 8th Annual Holiday Baskets

We are so thankful for all who contributed non-perishable goods, time, and effort to make our 8th holiday basket drive a success! Particular thanks to United Power for their huge financial support of this year’s holiday baskets, to Whispering Pines church for week-long use of the Fellowship Hall while all the goods were sorted. Thanks to the following locations for gathering goods for us this year: Coal Creek Canyon K-8, Carl’s Corner, Kwik Mart, Coal Creek Coffee, Last Stand, Coal Creek Liquors, and Wondervu Cafe, Chapel in the Hills and Whispering Pines Church.

A grateful shout out to Kris Jonsson and John Betz for helping us pick up goods from the Arvada Food Bank as well as Pastor’s Pantry organizer Lena, Patty at Whispering Pines Church, Penny and Darrell Smith, and Louie Cabrales. Many thanks to Boy Scout Pack 51 (and families, including Mia and Evan Manniko, Kris and Tami Lawson’s family, and Dave Schemel) for helping us fill 47 baskets on December 5! You can read more about the basket filling in this Mountain-Ear article. And enormous gratitude to the many volunteers who showed up to help haul those heavy baskets on December 7 (Pastor Todd Fletcher from Chapel in the Hills, Kathy Keating, Pastor Eric Prinkey and Joy, Dennis Akin, Eleyna Jack, and many more!).

Thanks too, to Canyon Cares current and emeritus Board members for both participating on distribution day and gathering and sorting the huge quantity of donations from our generous community in the weeks leading up to it. Special thanks to Nancy von Schulz for coordinating all of our efforts on this project.