Helping the city’s less fortunate during the holiday season is a tradition for a lot of Calgarians. And for one family, what started as a small project has grown into a real community effort.
Al Williams and his 13-year-old son Kerry started making and selling wooden reindeer in 2018.
Calling the project “Reindeer for a Reason,” Kerry wanted to sell the yard ornaments as a way of raising money to help those battling homelessness.
“They’re going to be struggling through the winter if they’ve got no place to sleep,” Kerry said. “It’s really sad.”
The Williamses made and sold 11 reindeer that first year. This Christmas, the herd has grown to 100.
“Traditionally, it’s been us doing it, up until last year, but this year we’ve really had a lot of help,” Al Williams said. “The Kerby (seniors) Centre cut out the ears, friends of ours cut out the antlers and the tails, and then the kids from the community have come and decorated the reindeer.”
Both father and son are grateful for the help.
“The community comes together,” Kerry said. “It’s been awesome.”
The Williamses are donating all proceeds from sales of their reindeer to the Inn from the Cold social agency, which is helping a lot of people get through another Christmas under the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There is a tremendous demand for our services and it’s a crisis,” Inn from the Cold executive director Heather Morley said.
“Initiatives like this, fundraisers like this (with) the Williams family, it’s compassion in action.”
The family’s donation to Inn from the Cold during the 2021 holiday season will be about $14,000.
“There’s going to be more people going into Inn from the Cold,” Kerry said. “That’s why I think this is even more important now.”
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