'Tis the season of giving

Christmas is a time of giving and the spirit of giving is alive and well at King’s, with several special Christmas fundraisers being undertaken throughout the holiday season.

For over 25 years, the King’s Christmas Families program has been collecting donations of unwrapped gifts for the Children’s Aid Society at Christmas. This year, unwrapped gifts and donations will continue to be collected until December 17.

A Christmas Wish list can be found in the following locations:

• Reception – Wemple Hall
• Central Services – Wemple Hall
• Social Work office – Labatt Hall
• Faculty Secretaries’ Office – Dante Lenardon Hall

“It is the generous donations from the King’s Staff Association and members of the King’s community that make this a success every year.  King’s is a place where people matter and this is just another one of the many examples of that,” Jeni Somerton, Receptionist/Communications Operator at King’s, says.

Each year for almost 30 years the School of Social Work organizes a Christmas Gift Drive in association with the John Howard Society.

From mid-November until the first week of December, the School of Social Work has had a Christmas tree set up in the mezzanine, outside of the Social Work office at Labatt Hall.  Staff, faculty and students are invited to take a tag off the tree and purchase a present for a child for Christmas. On each tag is information about a child (their age and gender).

A School of Social Work student who is in a practicum placement at the John Howard Society helps to organize the Christmas Gift Drive, with support from Julie Siverns, Social Work Programs Assistant.

This year’s Christmas Gift Drive, just completed, received four boxes of toys for children aged 2-10 years old, along with cash donations. Thank you to all who donated!

As in years past, Campus Ministry has participated in a number of fundraisers.

As part of the annual Sock Drive, socks, toiletries and underwear were collected by several departments across campus, and then donated to the Salvation Army and Mission Services of London through the Lambeth Lions Club. Sock donations are still being accepted in donation boxes set up in Wemple lobby and in the Student Life Centre. New and used pairs and single socks are accepted.

Diapers, sleepers and other items for new families in need were collected for the London Crisis Pregnancy Centre.  Additionally, over 250 shoeboxes of items were collected, filled, wrapped and delivered to the St. Joseph’s Hospitality Centre during the weekend of December 8 and distributed to guests of the Centre as part of the food and hospitality program run by Campus Ministry and supported by staff and faculty across King’s. The St. Joseph’s Hospitality nights continue in 2019 on the first and second Saturday of the month.

For more information on King's involvement with the St. Joseph's Hospitality Centre: visit www.kings.uwo.ca/campus-ministry/get-involved/social-justice-outreach/coffee-house