Cedar Park Holiday Basket Outreach by Victoria Iannotta, Holiday Basket Co-Chair

This article originally ran in the November 2012 Cedar Park Neighbors newsletter.  Want to receive the newsletter delivered to your doorstep (or directly to your email inbox)?  Join CPN today at http://www.cedarparkneighbors.org/join-cpn-donate/cpn-membership-form/  As is usually the case this time of year, I find it hard to accept the unpleasant reality that summer will not make a dramatic October comeback and it’s really time to unpack the winter clothes.  The leaves are falling all around us and in the blink of an eye, the holidays will be here.   Once I get past the shock of all of that, I remember that each autumn also brings with it the opportunity to work on a very rewarding project.

For the last 18 years, the Cedar Park Neighbors Holiday Basket outreach has collaborated with churches and non-profit organizations in our community to identify those for whom the gift of a Christmas holiday meal would be welcome.  It has become a long standing tradition that Joanne Pham and I have been honored to continue. Thanks solely to donations from so many local residents and businesses, last year we were able to provide food baskets to 660 people. That number represents an increase of 80 people over the previous year.

We would like to express our deep appreciation to all of the Cedar Park residents who have contributed in the past to this initiative as well as local area business who have demonstrated outstanding support for our community, and also ask if you can support us again this year.

Please consider your neighbors in need by supporting the Holiday Basket outreach again this year. A donation of $36.00 will allow you to sponsor two deserving families this holiday season, although any amount is most welcome.

If you know of deserving families in the Cedar Park area (46th to 52nd, Larchwood to Kingsessing), please give their names, addresses and the number of people in each family to one of our participating organizations. This information can be found on the donation form included in this edition of the newsletter.

To our local vendors - your donations are especially needed. Please give generously to support your community.

Volunteers are most welcome to help us pack and distribute the baskets on December 22, 2012 from 8:30-10:30 a.m. at Renewal Presbyterian Church located on the corner of 47th and Cedar.

Donations can be sent, with or without a form, to:

Cedar Park Neighbors, Holiday Baskets

Calvary Community Center

4740 Baltimore Avenue

Philadelphia, PA 19143

Or make a donation on-line by clicking here.

Thank you so very much for your support.