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Langley residents help provide toasty tootsies before Christmas

The donation from a recent sock drive were made to Salvation Army Gateway Of Hope
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Beverly Genge, Arabella Genge, and Ann Turner from St. George’s outreach committee collected 411 warm socks.

St. George’s Anglican Church outreach committee member and a great-grandmother, Beverly Genge, and volunteers from the community collected 411 new socks ahead of the holiday season.

The warm tootsies delivered to Salvation Army Gateway of Hope will eventually help those living on the streets during the coldest season of the year.

Members of the church outreach committee and residents of Chartwell Green, a seniors strata in Walnut Grove, joined hands to organize the drive through the first two weeks of December. The three-year-old annual event welcomed “a very special” volunteer to help this time. Genge’s 11-year-old great-granddaughter was “thrilled” to participate for the first time.

“You think kids don’t understand but, they do. They have had cold feet, too,” said Genge.

Genge, a Chartwell Green resident herself, said her neighbours’ compassion moved her as they came through tremendously for a good cause. The drive saw less participation this year than last year when the committee collected more than 485 socks.

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Genge said that since the church was closed for an extended period this year, members may not have had enough opportunities to donate. The committee collected a little more than 300 socks in the first year of the drive.

Three years ago, when Genge was driving around, she noticed some people living on the streets and struggling in the harsh winter season. That is when she and other outreach committee members decided to take the initiative.

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“It was very cold three years ago in the winters. We thought… what little thing we can do as a group, and we came up with an idea of a sock drive. We have all had cold feet, and it affects the whole body… sometimes that little bit of warmth makes a big difference,” said Genge.

“COVID has dampened a lot of things but, it will not dampen our feeling… that we did good,” she added.

For more information on St. George’s outreach committee, people can email the church office at office@stgeorgeanglican.ca. The church is located at 9160 Church St., Fort Langley.

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Tanmay Ahluwalia

About the Author: Tanmay Ahluwalia

Tanmay Ahluwalia is a journalist with a digital mindset and a proud alumnus of the University of Delhi.
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