With Christmas approaching, Orillia’s OPP Veterans’ Association (VA) rolled out the holiday cheer with a donation to the Lighthouse.
More than 100 VA members filled the bed of an OPP truck with food, gift cards, and a cash donation during their annual Christmas social at the Royal Canadian Legion on Thursday afternoon.
Their donation included about $300 in cash, gift cards for local retailers, and a food donation that filled the backseat and bed of the OPP truck.
The annual donation began in 2017, but was halted through the pandemic before resuming this year.
VA member Nick Barranick said members appreciated helping out local causes, and the Lighthouse in particular.
Prior to the Christmas social donation, the VA donated the proceeds of its annual golf tournament to the Lighthouse as well.
“It truly is a great thing. They know where it’s going. The Lighthouse is such a worthy cause, and what a bonus this (new) facility is for this city,” Barranick said. “COVID came along and we suspended it because we didn’t have that gathering, (but) we brought it back and the generosity is as good as it ever has been.”
Barranick said legion members contributed, too, noting one went to Metro to pick something up to help fill the truck.
At the Lighthouse, development manager Janet Thomas said staff have been working hard to give the shelter holiday touches, but added Christmas is often a difficult time for clients.
“It is a tough time for most of the people that are here, even though we try to make it as homey as possible around Christmas,” she said. “It’s truly not their home; it’s a shelter.”
The generosity of community groups like the OPP VA is part of what makes the Lighthouse’s work possible, she said.
“We can’t stand alone. It’s part of the community. Between the emergency shelter and between the supportive housing, we can help 70 people, but there’s hundreds and we can’t do it alone. With the community partners, they really help us to reach the (broader) population, including the ones that are here,” she said.
“It overwhelms me, the ability that people have to give.”
In 2020, the OPP VA made a $1,000 donation to the Lighthouse’s Building Hope campaign.
Anyone interested in making donations to the Lighthouse can find a list of requested items on its website.
