WELLINGTON COUNTY – The Guelph-Wellington Basketeers return this holiday season with their 2024 campaign in support of Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis (GWWIC).
The basketeer program encourages the community to put together baskets of household items for women transitioning from a shelter to a place of their own.
“I find this community really rallies together,” said Guelph-Wellington Basketeers director Laura Blinkhorn.
“There are women that have started a street collection so their whole neighbourhood is doing baskets.”
The Guelph Wellington chapter of basketeers began in 2009 with a small group of people putting together baskets and donating them.
In 2013 Blinkhorn moved from Toronto to Fergus, and after previous experience with the Toronto basketeers chapter she decided to help grow the campaign, becoming director in 2016.
Blinkhorn says this year’s priority items are mostly for the kitchen, including dishes and silverware, cooking utensils, bedding, towels, dish soap, sponges, cleaning supplies and small kitchen appliances.
“The list is ongoing, but … I would say start with the kitchen and just think about all of what you use to prepare a meal,” she said.
Blinkhorn would also like to remind those preparing baskets this year that all items inside the baskets must be new, and baskets should not contain food or beverage items, sized clothing, or too many personal care products.
Basket wrapping is optional; however, all baskets must include an itemized list of contents on the outside of the basket.
Last year’s basketeers campaign saw 180 baskets donated along with $6,000 in monetary donations to be put towards gift card purchases.
This year Blinkhorn says she would like to see 200 baskets donated and hopes to match or exceed last year’s monetary donations.
This year’s monetary donation deadline is Nov. 15 and basket drop off day is Nov. 23 at the GWWIC Elizabeth Street location in Guelph from 9am to1pm.
To register a basket or to make a monetary donation visit basketeers.org/chapter/guelph-wellington or for more information contact Laura Blinkhorn at Guelph-wellington@basketeers.org.
