850 Families Benefit from Salvation Army’s Hamper Programme

The Salvation Army’s Christmas programme started with the yearly Kettle Appeal. Earlier this month, the organization hosted a party for deserving children in the city. Today, they topped it off. At different venues, families lined up and received a hamper of goodies to make sure their dinner tables are filled with a scrumptious lunch. News Five’s Duane Moody reports.

Duane Moody, Reporting

At three locations across the city today, Belizeans gathered to receive hampers as part of the Salvation Army’s annual Christmas parcel programme. The humanitarian organization for years have been providing hundreds of families from across the country with non-perishables—for needy households to experience the joys of Christmas. At its headquarters on Regent Street, hundreds of men and women streamed into the office for their bag of goodies. The programme is made possible through initiatives like the annual kettle appeal.

Joliker Leandre, Commander, Salvation Army

“We have kettles all over the place and persons going into various stores, drop in their coins and the cheque and whatever they have. And that is the accumulation of everything; everyone’s contribution made it possible today.  We started with distribution from the sixth of December and we are continuing until the twenty-night of December, so after Christmas we still have distribution. Not only do we have food parcel distributions, but we have visitation in the various institutions and so forth. But as it relates to today, we have distribution in three different locations: here, forty-one Regent Street and twenty-one Castle Street and also on twelve Cemetery Road.”

According to Commander Joliker Leandre, eight hundred and fifty families are benefiting from the hamper drive, which caters to a family of five.

Joliker Leandre

“We have ten different items in the parcels. We have rice, and flour, sugar, beans, sausage, milk, cool-aid, corn beef, choco, oil. These are the main items that we have in the parcels and these are non-perishable food.”

Reporter

“So how do you select the people that receive these packages?”

Joliker Leandre

Joliker Leandre

“The individuals come; we have the notice put out and those who are really in need, the will come and register. So the registration was on the fifth of December for Belize City and they came and register. As you can see for yourself, most of them are senior citizens, but we do have other persons, much younger, who have the need. We don’t discriminate against anybody; once there is a need, that’s where we come in.”

One thousand nine-hundred children are also benefiting from the annual Christmas party that the Salvation Army hosts in several locations. Those gifts as well as hampers will be distributed in the days ahead to areas like Hattieville and Maskal Villages.

Joliker Leandre

“Tomorrow, we will have Hattieville. The twenty-ninth we’ll have in Georgeville and San Ignacio and those areas. We don’t have anybody in Orange Walk, but these are the locations. And then we have Maskal on Saturday. We travel to this community—not only we’ll bring food hampers, but also the children, we normally have their gifts save for them to take to the village.”

Duane Moody for News Five.