Imagine the holidays without presents, or even a turkey to feed your family.
That’s the reality for some of the 950 households participating in the local Holiday Food and Gift Basket Program. Each year since the 1970s, the effort has been providing gifts to families, seniors and individuals in need.
Last month, volunteer organizers sent a letter to past supporters, asking them to donate again to this year’s program. Contributors are asked to “sponsor” a person or family by buying them holiday gifts off their wish list. With just a few weeks to go before volunteers start delivering gifts, 125 households were still unsponsored as of Tuesday, said Patty Henek, coordinator for the program.
The 950 households represent more than 2,200 individuals, a drop from the 971 homes served last year. Henek speculated that the dip was because some families could no longer afford to live in the area and moved away.
“It wasn’t that they were necessarily doing better and there was less of a need,” she said.
To be eligible for the gift basket program, which is run by the Oak Park-River Forest Community of Congregations, you must be at or below a certain income level ($20,147 for an individual or $48,415 for a family of five). Candidates are referred by schools, social service agencies and the townships. The majority of recipients are from Oak Park and River Forest, while a few live outside the community but attend churches here.
The Holiday Food and Gift Basket program is also asking for monetary donations to help defray the costs of food gift certificates, which it gives to families each November. Previously, the Oak Park-River Forest Food Pantry provided $24,000 toward the certificates but isn’t contributing this year because of a shift in its focus. That increases the need for donations.
Ten Thousand Villages is hosting a fundraiser Thursday night from 6 to 9 p.m., with 15 percent of store sales going to the food certificate program.
Gifts will be dropped off Dec. 3-8 and delivered Dec. 10. If you’re interested in sponsoring a home, email holidaybasket@hotmail.com or call 708-771-6159, ext. 244. Checks to the certificate program can be made out to Holiday Food and Gift Basket and mailed to P.O. Box 3365, Oak Park, IL 60303.