Community Living Chatham-Kent is helping put on a big Christmas dinner this year, by donating to the annual Community Cares Christmas Dinner.
CLCK donated $500 from the proceeds of the 2019 Food Crawl to the dinner.
For thirteen years, this free dinner has been an annual tradition for local business owners Brent and Tammy Ripley.
“This donation will help pay for the turkeys we’ll need. We have grown to serving over 600 people in our community with a hot Christmas dinner, at no charge,” Brent said in a media release.
According to Tammy Chouinard, the Manager of Community Relations, Community Living Chatham-Kent, this cause is something the agency feels is important to the community, as it is more than just a free meal.
“A few soup kitchens volunteer to help out with this dinner. Then, at the end of the night, they take anything that is left over to share at their shelters. Many who come for the free meal also lend a helping hand too. Brent and Tammy have put their hearts into this event and have done an incredible job with growing it into a place where everyone feels welcome,” said Chouinard.
The Community Cares Christmas Dinner will take place on Sunday, December 1st at the W.I.S.H. Centre.
CLCK also selected Olivia Formosa to receive a donation of $1,000 from the proceeds of the Food Crawl. The money will go towards Olivia’s medical costs.
At age two, a large mass was found around her cerebellum, around her brain stem and down her spinal cord. The tumour was found to be cancerous.
Olivia was taken into surgery immediately and has since been through many more procedures.
While getting back on her feet, it was discovered that Olivia’s tumour had returned. She had another surgery and woke up paralyzed on her left side.
Olivia, now four, is finally back at home where she has physiotherapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy regularly. Her mom, Brooke, had to find an accessible home and is now living at an apartment back in Wallaceburg.
“We heard about the struggles this family is still going through, and our hearts go out to Olivia and her family. We hope these funds will help to ease some of the stress they might be feeling, and hopefully allow them to focus more of their attention on supporting her recovery,” Chouinard said.
