For the third consecutive year, Envision Financial's Angel Tree program will be delivering Christmas joy to hundreds of local families.
All 20 Envision branches displayed a decorated Christmas tree with ornaments that represented a child, senior or food bank. Members of the community were invited to take an ornament from the tree and return it with a new and unwrapped gift or non-perishable food item.
The response was tremendous - 1,368 gifts, 3,400 pounds of food and almost $15,000 were distributed to 21 charities.
"What's most overwhelming is the gratefulness," says Barbara Westlake, Christmas co-ordinator for Deltassist, which was the recipient of donations in Delta.
"There is so much need but also so much gratefulness for the support that Envision and programs like Angel Tree provide. Everyone wants the very best for their kids, especially at Christmas time. I would like to thank everyone who donated and is helping make that wish come true."
"We were overwhelmed by the support our Angel Tree program received from members of the community," says Susan Byrom, manager of corporate citizenship at Envision Financial. "The response far surpassed last year's total of 600 gifts."
This year's program also included the addition of a YouTube video that highlighted the need for donations. For every view, Envision donated $1 to its Angel Tree partners. The video garnered over 2,000 views, resulting in an extra $2,000 to local charities.
