Melinda Myers of Labrador City knows how it feels to be given a pair of new pyjamas to wear on Christmas Eve. It’s a feeling she’d like all children and youth in Labrador West to experience.
“I grew up in a home with a single parent because my dad passed away when I was only nine and my brother was 12. But, every Christmas Eve, we received new pyjamas and that was a highlight in our home,” Myers said. A gift of pyjamas for the holiday season is a tradition Myers and her family continue to this day.
When she went looking for a way to give back to her community a few years ago, Myers decided she would like to hold a pyjama drive for less-fortunate children and youth in the area.
During the first year of her Pajamas for Kids project, she collected more than 1,100 pairs of new pyjamas. Hundreds of pairs have been donated to her project every year since, she said.
“Even during the hard years in our community, I’ve still collected over 400 pairs of pyjamas,” she said. Myers also donates extra sleepwear to the local shelter or any other children and youth in need during other times of the year. While the pyjama drive is Myers’ initiative, she stressed it’s the people who donate who deserve credit for its “amazing success.”
“There’s just so much generosity in our communities, including our neighbouring community of Fermont, who also help out and donate,” she said. “When you are sorting the pyjamas and you know where they are going [to children and youth in need], it just melts your heart … I was one of those kids who didn’t have a lot when my dad passed away. So, to get those new pyjamas was huge. And now this [project] is a very big part of my Christmas,” she said.
For more information, visit Pajamas for Kids (Labrador West) on Facebook.
This content originally appeared in YULETIDE PREPARATIONS, a SaltWire custom publishing title.
