Members of a Moncton-area Facebook page are spreading joy across the region by leaving gift bags stuffed with goodies on the steps of families that may be struggling with isolation due to COVID-19.
“It is so exciting. It is like Christmas for them and it just boosts their morale,” said Tina Cserkuti of Riverview, N.B.
She started “Doorstep Fairy surprise/Surprise de fée de porte *MONCTON*” last week. The group already has more than 1,000 members.
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Cserkuti is calling on more volunteer fairies, including her own daughters, to sneak around the city and drop off surprise gifts for kids who may be having a hard time making sense of life during the pandemic.
“Most kids have been really awesome troopers going through this. They are so resilient they just need a pick me up,” she said.
Cserkuti’s two daughters, Jasmine, 10, and Jessica, 7, along with other volunteers from the group, dress in colourful fairy wings and tiptoe onto porches.
They leave behind bags of goodies as they ring doorbells and run off so they don’t get spotted.
“It’s really hard right now. We can’t go to school we can’t see our friends,” said Jasmine.
She said that making other people smile and giving back to her community warms her heart.
Cserkuti said that in less than a week the group has already delivered approximately 100 gift bags to homes across the city.
The gifts inside the bags are purchased by volunteers, said Cserkuti, and can include inexpensive toys, candies and books.
She said the shrieks of delight heard from the kids in the videos posted to the site bring her to tears. One little girl can be heard yelling, “fairies at real” in one of the videos posted to the page.
“It just pulls at my heartstrings,” said Cserkuti while wiping away tears.
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She said she is now hoping magical moments like it will spread and that communities across the country will start recruiting their own little fabulous fairies.
“It is an awesome country and I know we are all generous and we are all kind-hearted people are we just love to spread joy,” Cserkuti said.
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