There will be a different approach to Christmas this year for a charity that’s supported single-parent families in St. John’s, NL for more than three decades.
Single Parent Association of Newfoundland (SPAN) executive director Elaine Balsom says that with COVID-19 affecting not only single parents but also families with reliable income streams, there may be fewer people donating to the charity this year.
“Everyone loves to help out at Christmas. But this year, people may not have the disposable income they normally do to give back,” she says.
The charity’s Christmas effort is its largest program and regularly supports 300 single-parent families around the holidays. During the rest of the year, its programs include back-to-school, a food bank, and other support programs.
At Christmas, SPAN organizes incoming donations to give out to its clients, as well as a sponsoring program pairing donors with specific families and their wish lists. This year, it will instead focus on collecting monetary or gift card donations due to COVID-19, meaning families will shop for themselves in lieu of picking up items from SPAN in-person.
Balsom says while this will keep people safe from COVID-19, it means that a special part of their gift-giving process will be on hold until after the pandemic has ended.
“We’ll miss giving the presents out in person this year, but we want to keep this as safe as possible for both our clients and those wanting to help,” she says.
With COVID-19 affecting jobs and causing greater financial strain than is normal as the weather turns cold, Balsom says help is needed more than ever. But even if donations do drop this year as people find COVID-19 putting pressure on their pocketbooks, Balsom says she and the rest of the SPAN team are always grateful for whatever help donors are able to provide.
“It’s all about helping those single parents out there. We are beyond grateful for the help from both public and private sectors. We want them to know that all of this could not happen without them,” says Balsom.
“There are increased costs around Christmas, like heating and food. With these parents being on one income, there is so much pressure. Even getting money to purchase a pair of pyjamas can relieve that.”
