Despite a drop in donations to the Realtors Care Blanket Drive, clients of Surrey’s NightShift Ministries will be a little warmer this winter.
The organization was the main charity recipient in Surrey for the donations, which were collected at real estate offices from Nov. 28 to Dec. 5. They received “an incredible haul” of quality items, said Laurie Dawson, spokesperson for the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, noting the group had to rent space to hold the items until they could be sorted.
Dawson said more than 30 per cent of items collected in Surrey came from the South Surrey/White Rock area.
In all, 1,015 bags were collected from throughout Surrey, North Delta and White Rock. By comparison, last year’s drive ended with 1,471 bags.
Across the Lower Mainland, this year’s items were distributed to nearly 19,000 working poor and homeless people.
NightShift Ministries’ MaryAnne Conner anticipates her organization’s share will provide a change of clothes and a fresh blanket to every client who needs it until April 2012.
“This donation program is an integral part of our mission to assist those in need,” she said.