The Cranbrook and District Chamber of Commerce is getting set for its third straight one day turkey drive for the Salvation Army and Cranbrook Food Bank.
A great number of families in the Cranbrook area find the Christmas season especially tough. Jason Wheeldon, one of the organizers of the turkey drive, said the local need is 750 families, and the goal is to provide a festive Christmas dinner for all of them.
And so, on Wednesday, Dec. 5, from 10 a.m. To 4:30 p.m., the Chamber will be seeking to collect at $20,000 in pledges, to provide turkey and trimmings for the Salvation Army and Food Bank's hamper programs to help fill that need.
Wheeldon said some "celebrity pledge-raisers" will be stepping up to help out, to call Chamber members and to get out in the community to help achieve the goal. And watch for the six-foot turkey strutting the streets downtown, a striking visual reminder to call the Chamber office or drop by with your pledge.
The drive is also being held with an eye to those cold, less festive months after Christmas. "Everybody's generous at Christmas," Wheeldon said. "But Christmas tends to drain the resources (of the Salvation Army and Food Bank). There is still a great need after Christmas, in January and February."
On Wednesday, Dec. 5, call the Cranbrook and District Chamber of Commerce office at 250-426-5914 to make your pledge.