Christmas has passed but one Ottawa couple has continued the holiday spirit by sharing a colourful tradition, which usually ends up in the trash, with children in need.
Stephanie and Sheldon Gilmer are collecting donated Christmas cards and are cutting out the front images to create gifts for children in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The couple both work for World Hope Canada, a relief and development organization that has been running since 2000.
On their next trip, they plan to drop off the tear outs at schools in the African country's northern province of Equateur.
"Once Christmas is over, we throw them out," said Stephanie, who is World Hope's executive director. "But they will cherish them. They literally treasure them, they do."
As of Jan. 11, the couple only had 50 cards but their goal is to collect 1,000 by the end of February when they plan to return to the Congo. You can donate your old Christmas cards by going to the World Hope Canada website.
After a conflict forced nearly 200,000 people from their homes, Equateur is now more stable. The biggest problem for the children, according to the Gilmers, is a bigger child stealing that gift from them.
Adults are also very interested in the old card designs.
"You'll see little kids get cards and then they have to run home because bigger kids are going to try and take those cards from them," Sheldon said.
"Even some parents will line up as well, the fact that it's something to brighten up their home."
The Gilmers lived in the war-torn nation in the 1980s during a medical mission and continue to watch how the country is unfolding.
1 comment