The 25th annual REALTORS Care® Blanket Drive took place November 18 to 25 and final donations were delivered to charities last week. Every year, we hear from FVREB members afterwards asking us, “So, how did we do?” Well, we did very well!
We asked a couple of volunteers to help us explain.
Langley’s Clayton Lindberg, a 13-year veteran on the Drive says, “I certainly noticed that the quality and quantity of donations resulted in one of our best years yet. Although not every year can be record-breaking, 2019 seemed to be a good year for Realtors and members of the public to get in there and clean out their closets to look for items that might be suitable for people in need in our communities.”
David Corrie, a volunteer who has led the Abbotsford team’s efforts the past two years along with Rajin Gill, explains, “Rajin and I obtained donations from some very generous clients, and together with our own resources, we also shopped for additional warm clothing and blankets. Volunteering on the Blanket Drive was very rewarding.”
Here’s a short video by the Abbotsford team demonstrating just what it takes to collect 160 bags full of clothing and blankets!
Thanks to over 60 Fraser Valley member volunteers and 40 brokerages, contributing and supporting the worthwhile yearly event, we were able to deliver 1,376 bags of donations to 26 non-profit or charitable groups throughout our region. That’s more clothing, bedding, mitts, toques, scarves or other much-needed items than last year’s total of 1,362 bags, but not as many as our record-breaking year in 2010 when we collected 2,187 bags. However, this year we collected more donations than almost every year since 2010.
Way to go Fraser Valley Realtors!
“I want to say a big thank you to all the volunteers and community for their support. Every year, the Drive arrives at the perfect time to help people struggling to cope with dark, dreary and wet days,” Clayton adds.
Want to join Clayton, David and Rajin and many others in helping people in your community? Consider volunteering next year! Email debbie.jay@fvreb.bc.ca so she can add your name to the list of potential volunteers for next year’s event.
To see more pictures from the 2019 REALTORS Care® Blanket Drive, check out our Flickr album here.