Community organizations across B.C. were able to spread a little extra holiday cheer thanks to eight festive community collaborations led by BCLC.
In the spirit of giving and generating win-wins for the greater good, BCLC worked with an assortment of partners to offer support to community members in need between December 11th and December 20th, 2024:
- In Courtenay, BCLC, Chances Courtenay and Quality Foods donated and delivered 100 turkeys to the Comox Valley Food Bank. Volunteers from the three organizations delivered the turkeys as well as packed and prepared food for the food bank’s distribution line.
- In Prince George, BCLC, Treasure Cove Casino and the City of Prince George donated 250 care packages to the local St. Vincent de Paul Society. Volunteers bundled and delivered the care items to community members and assisted with the preparation and serving of lunch for the society’s clients.
- In Coquitlam, BCLC, Great Canadian Casino Vancouver and Save-on-Foods donated more than 140 units of coffee and tea to SHARE Family & Community Services Society and sponsored the purchase of eight wagons to help clients get their food hampers to their vehicles. Volunteers also served coffee, hot chocolate and speciality doughnuts from Coquitlam’s Doughnut Love as part of a special holiday pop-up for SHARE’s clients.
- In Vancouver, BCLC and Parq Casino donated 100 gift bags filled with pyjamas, sweet treats, socks and toiletries to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre. BCLC also donated over 400 treat bags to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank, with volunteers packaging and delivering the gift bags. Additionally, BCLC filled personalized stockings for London Drugs’ Stocking Stuffers for Seniors, based on participating seniors’ wish lists.
- In Surrey, BCLC, Great Canadian Entertainment and the City of Surrey donated 100 pairs of socks and blankets and 100 hot meals to the Cloverdale Community Kitchen through their dinner program. Volunteers prepared the food and distributed the socks and blankets.
- In Kamloops, BCLC, Gateway Casinos, Save-on-Foods and the City of Kamloops donated 455 hams to the Kamloops Food Bank. Volunteers also helped deliver and distribute the hams.
These holiday giving initiatives were organized by Marina Andrew and Sandra Newvine, members of BCLC’s social purpose and engagement team. For them, and everyone involved, it wasn’t just about the donation: it was about connection, too.
“Many of the non-profit organizations we supported through this initiative receive funds through the Community Gaming Grants program. This winter, we wanted to do something special and work with our casino service providers to help further that impact. Marina and Sandra brought our community partners together to provide that extra help and help to spark that vitally important sense of human connection, especially at this time of year,” said Jordan O’Genski, manager of social purpose and engagement at BCLC.
In 2023/24, thanks to its players, BCLC generated $1.5 billion net income for the Province of B.C., which helps support health care, education and local infrastructure across B.C. Of that, $140 million funded the Province of B.C.’s Community Gaming Grants program, which supports a range of non-profit organizations in their delivery of ongoing community programs and services.
David Reynolds, executive director at the Comox Valley Food Bank –
“We’ve seen a 260 percent increase in the number of clients that we’ve served this year, compared to that number before COVID-19. The need for supplementary food continues to grow in our community. We rely on both food and cash donations to get free, supplementary food to people in need, so we’re very grateful to the folks at BCLC, Gateway Casinos and Quality Foods for helping us secure these turkeys. With their support, we can connect more families to essential nourishment – and the other important kind that comes from spending time together over the holidays.”
Bernie Goold, president at the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Prince George –
“In order to continue delivering our services to people in need in Prince George, we rely on all kinds of donations – food, items and cash – so this support from BCLC, Treasure Cove Casino and the City of Prince George makes a big difference. Their help means we can connect more community members to the kinds of items that are always useful, needed and are also soul-nourishing, especially during the holidays.”
Claire MacLean, CEO at the SHARE Family & Community Services Society –
“Donations of food, items, cash and even time are so valuable to SHARE. We are very grateful to the folks at BCLC, Great Canadian Casino Vancouver and Save-on-Foods for visiting us to lend their support and generosity to our community. It was meaningful that we were able to share a little extra comfort with the people and families we serve – especially this close to the holidays. Coffee and tea are regularly requested and are truly treasured by our clients. The significant donation along with the wagons were a huge surprise to us. They will make it a little easier for us to provide thoughtful and accessible service to our clients over the winter months.”
Marty Jones, executive director at Cloverdale Community Kitchen –
“Cloverdale Community Kitchen is busier than ever, and we’ve seen an increase in the number of clients who require our help. We exist to help those in need – to feed the hungry and provide care for individuals when they need support. We wouldn’t be able to provide our clients with these programs without the support from our community, so we’re very grateful to the teams at BCLC, Great Canadian Entertainment and the City of Surrey for their donation. It means a lot that we were able to provide these hot meals to provide a bit of extra comfort and nourishment so close to the holiday season.”
Elody Croullebois, fundraising and communications specialist at the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre –
“Women in the Downtown Eastside experience terrible levels of violence. DEWC exists to offer them a safe space, to catch a breath from their ongoing struggle. During the holidays, we do our best to bring joy in our spaces with a special gift for everyone. Thanks to the support of BCLC and Parq, we are able to offer truly nice presents to each of the women who use our shelters to open on Christmas morning. It really takes a village to make the world a slightly better place, and I'm grateful we have these organizations as our allies.”
