Moved by the Christmas spirit

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This article was published 09/12/2022 (1342 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Al Altomare knows when the temperature dips and the Christmas spirit begins to appear, it’s his chance to make a difference.

Altomare, 65, is in his 10th year volunteering at the Christmas Cheer Board. He took it up after retiring in 2012 after more than three decades of teaching.

Searching for ways to stay busy, Altomare immediately picked up work at Winnipeg Harvest and Habitat for Humanity throughout the summer. In November of that year, he started working at the Cheer Board a few times a week on the assembly line.

“You sort of just get sucked in,” Altomare said, earlier this week. “You meet people there who are enjoyable to work with, they’re committed to helping out.

“They’re working harder than you are. There’s always a volunteer there who puts in way more time, way more effort than I do. So, that’s sort of inspirational, as well.”

Over the next two holiday seasons, Altomare returned home each night and told his wife, Susan, heartwarming stories about his time at the Cheer Board. When Susan retired in 2015, she promptly joined the organization in the call centre.

The couple are regulars on the assembly line; they unpack food to be placed in carefully assembled hampers and sent out to thousands of families in need, in time for Christmas.

“It’s become a four-day-a-week enterprise for us,” Al said.

“We see the need. We’re thankful every day that we and our family aren’t in that sort of situation. It’s four days and it’s hard work, but it’s nothing compared to what some people have to live through in order to make it from one day to the next.”

Currently, 335 people volunteer at the Cheer Board, which will send out more than 17,000 hampers this year. The number of workers doesn’t include the hundreds of drivers who make deliveries.

There’s a need for fewer workers this year because of automation but it’s the perfect number, said volunteer co-ordinator Debra Halligan.

“We do ask that our regular volunteers give us four shifts during the season, but so many give much more than that,” said Halligan. “Some people are here every day and you almost have to say, ‘No, no, that’s too much.’”

Halligan, who has volunteered since 2018, said retirees make up the bulk of volunteers, but nearly one-third comprises young adults. There are also students and those who want to help out in the evenings after work.

“We’re so grassroots and it just kind of works,” Halligan said.

“I just notice a willingness to help: ‘What can I do? What do you need? Give me a job, any job. I’ll do whatever you want.’ That’s what I see. And now we’re waking up, we’re all getting that Christmas spirit, so to speak.”

There’s much to do, from working at the call centre to wrapping toys to accepting donations. Rovers move around the warehouse to help out where needed.

One of them is Christine Valk. She is also responsible for organizing labels for the hamper deliveries that began Wednesday.

Valk, 62, is in her first year at the Cheer Board after 10 years as a teaching assistant. The transition to the Cheer Board, along with her husband Dave Taylor, who works on the assembly line, has been a natural progression. They were persuaded to join following a call for volunteers on the radio.

“It’s been pretty easy to fit in,” Valk said.

“My first impression is that it’s really well organized, really well laid out — kind, friendly people — everybody very grateful for whatever you can contribute. It’s just a very welcoming atmosphere and very focused on the goals. I’m quite impressed with the whole setup.”

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca