In the spirit of giving and the Celebration of Life of women, men and children, LILIANA’S BOUTIQUE is accepting your donations of your clean, unwante
d coats and jackets in supportof BISSELL CENTRE. In return for your generosity to provide warmth to the homeless and those less fortunate, Liliana’s Boutique will reward you with $50 towards your new coat or fall fashion wardrobe purchase over $300. In addition, Michel Germain Perfumes will contribute samples of the Canadian fragrance “SéxÅ«al for Men” for every man’s coat donated.
Your contributions of warmth will be accepted from NOVEMBER 1 – 10, 2012 at Liliana’s Boutique ~ 12302 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton
For more information, contact [email protected] or 780-448-0714.
It has been five weeks since the flood that damaged our Bissell East building, and we are happy to report that the services we provide in the community have remained as steady as ever – thanks to the support of our generous donors, and a little creativity from our staff!
One shining example of this dedication to Bissell programs can be found in our resident cook, Ian Szabo. Despite losing our kitchen facilities to flood damage, Ian has committed to providing healthy lunches to our drop in and child care without interruption. Since the flood, Bissell Centre has had access to a refrigerated food truck (courtesy of PTI Group Inc.), and our neighbors at the nearby Mustard Seed have been kind enough to share their kitchen facilities with our hardworking chef; every day Ian works hard to transport food back and forth from that kitchen directly to our programs.
When asked about the extra work going into his cooking these days, Ian simply reminds us that for him, “It’s all worth it for the kids”. Thanks to the generosity of our community and Ian’s hard work and creativity in the face of this challenge, we have been able to continue to provide crucial food services to the people in greatest need. Like many who work and volunteer at Bissell, he recognizes the importance of seeing our services provided without interruption so that we can continue to change the face of poverty in our community. Our thanks goes out to Ian, and to all of you who have kept Bissell Centre thriving in these challenging times!
Despite the extensive damage to our East building caused by recent flooding, Bissell Centre has been able to continue providing essential services to alleviate poverty in our community – thanks largely to our generous donors! We are moved and thankful for the outpouring of community support while we adapt our programs to work around the water damage. Because of the good will of our supporters — individuals and organizations — we are confident we can continue to meet the needs of our community members.
In the coming weeks, we are calling on our supporters to help us to continue providing reliable meals for our community members. Unfortunately the storage and preparation areas for our meal services have been compromised, so we are looking for mealtime alternatives for our participants.
Food
• Sandwiches (250/day for community members – 200 for dropâ€in, 50 for casual labor lunches) We have no kitchen access, so unfortunately cannot accept hot food at this time.
• Snacks like fresh fruit, pudding, yogurt, granola bars, juice boxes and bottled water (250/day)
• Childcare Snacks – Fresh or canned fruit, yogurt, and vegetables for salads
• Ground Coffee, Black Tea, powdered creamer and sugar.
Toiletries
• Intake/Dropâ€In – Sunscreen, Insect repellent
• Men – Razors, deodorant
• Women – Feminine hygiene products, deodorant
Clothing
• NEW Underwear and Socks
• Any men’s clothing
* Please contact Kristy Berryman at 780.423.2285 x 114 if you would like to donate any food, toiletries or clothing items!
For Food & Financial donations, please drop off at our Main Office:Bissell Centre (East Building, Main Floor Intake/Reception)
10527 96 Street, Edmonton
Phone: 780.423.2285
Drop Off Hours
Monday – Friday, 8am – 4pm |
For ALL OTHER donations please
drop off at either of these
locations:
Bissell Thrift Shoppe
8818 118 Avenue, Edmonton
Phone: 780.471.6644
Drop Off Hours
Monday – Saturday, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Sunday, 10:00 am – 3:30 pm
South Side Drop-off Location
5120 – 122 Street, Edmonton
*Near the red mailboxes
Phone: 780.432.2377
Drop Off Hours
Monday – Saturday, 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Sunday: Closed
|
If you’d like to make a charitable donation, or are interested in hosting a fundraising event, please contact Christopher Weiss at 780.423.2285 x 154 or Joshua Marshall at 780.423.2285 x 123. You can also click HERE to go to our donations page.
Severe flooding has damaged much of our basement facilities and the stockpiles of food and clothing on which our community depends. PTI – one of Bissell Centre’s trusted and valued donors – stepped forward today with a huge grocery delivery brimming with much needed emergency supplies!
Extreme rainfall has negatively affected many homes and businesses in the Edmonton area, including those of PTI. Thankfully, our generous partners recognize that poverty is a hardship on all 365 days of the year. Without this outpouring of aid, we would be unable to ensure that children, families and individuals have access to the core services that Bissell Centre provides including daily nutrition, quality childcare and access to clean clothing.
PTI’s commendable donation of fruit, sandwiches, milk, socks and soap – among a great many other goods – will go a long way to ensure that Bissell Cente can continue to serve the community as we cope with the aftermath of sewage flooding.
As we continue to receive donations, we would like to thank partners like PTI for helping make our community a better place for everyone.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fqFUvdW8luE&feature=youtu.be&a]
Breaking News: PTI Group delivering a loaded refrigerated grocery truck at 1pm! Filled with pallets of thousands of snacks, drinks, fruit, grocery bags and much more needed food items to our Bissell Centre East – 10527 96 Street.
The generous and speedy donation comes in response to Wednesday’s call for help after our basement flooded with sewage due to recent storms.
PHOTO OPPORTUNITY
Information contact: Kristen Clark, [email protected]; 780.423.2285 ext 142, cell 780-964-7220
| Bissell Press Release Here |
| PTI Group Press Release on their website |
Due to the severe thunderstorm we experienced on Monday, July 23, parts of downtown experienced a sewage surge/backup, including our Bissell Centre East building. The contamination and fumes are so severe that we had to close our building, including our Food Room, Kitchen, Child Care and Community Closet. The extent of the damage is still being assessed however we are currently estimating repair, clean up and replacement costs and damages are severe.
As our storage areas for food are compromised, we are asking you for support the best way you can – helping us via monetary donations. Donations can be made:
- Online using our donations page
- By Phone at 780.423.2285 Ext. 365
- By Mail to 10527 – 96 Street, Edmonton, AB, T5H 2H6
You can also help by:
- Donating clothing, household goods, and children’s toys to the Bissell Centre Thrift Shoppe at 8818 – 118 Avenue.
- Contributing gift cards for Safeway and Wal-Mart.
- Providing gifts of disposable plates and cutlery for our meals.
All aid is valuable. Thank you for your generous support.
If you feel that your corporation has the potential to make a significant contribution to our facilities or financially, please contact us at: 780.423-2285.
Q & A with Mandy, Community Closet Worker
So what do you do at Bissell?
I work in the Community Closet. I do paperwork, sort donations and organize the closet to keep it tidy.
What is the Community Closet?
The Community Closet, located in the basement of Bissell Centre, is a program where low income/no income clients can receive free clothes and household items on a referral basis. We work with 22 other agencies across the city, i.e the John Howard Society, women shelters, H.I.V Edmonton and more. Once a client gets referred, they get a voucher to use at the Community Closet. They will have up to 2 weeks to fill it. This service can be accessed once every three months. It is open Monday to Friday from 12:30-4:30pm. Clients can drop by anytime with their vouchers.
How many years have you been with Bissell?
I’ve been here for 11 years, ever since the Community Closet program started.
What do you like most about working here?
It is rewarding and I get to help people. It is as simple as that.
How many clients do you see on a daily basis?
It varies, but we average about 28 clients a day.
Where can people drop off their donations?
You can drop off your clothes and other household items at the Bissell Thrift Shoppe on 8818 118 Avenue or our South Side Donation Centre at 5120 – 122 Street or you can drop them off directly at Bissell Centre (10527 96 Street), if you prefer. We are always short on Men’s clothes. So if you have any, please drop them off!
Marilyn, a new Community Closet client
Marilyn is one of the many clients who access the Community Closet at Bissell. She is waiting outside the doors patiently with her voucher in her hands. She came here today looking for a change of clothes. It is her first time here. She has been on the streets for some time now in the same clothes and only came here because some people on the street told her about his place. Marilyn didn’t ever think she would be in her current situation. She always had her own place. She didn’t have to worry about where she would be sleeping each night. Now due to some unfortunate circumstances, she is homeless. Tonight, she will be staying in a shelter. Her future is uncertain. The only thing that she is certain about is that she will get some clean clothes to wear from Bissell Centre’s Community Closet.
To find out more about this program, please contact the Community Closet at 780-423-2285, ext. 118 or view the Community Closet webpage.
Story written by Guest Blogger Karen Lee.
As the cost of living continues to increase, access to transportation is an ongoing concern to many of those we help. As a recipient agency of the City of Edmonton’s Donate-a-Ride program, we are able to provide free transit tickets – helping people return to school, obtain gainful employment, prevent home eviction and attend often life-saving, medical appointments.
Recently, a young man came to Bissell Centre in desperate need of help to prevent being evicted from his home – picking bottles for the bus fare he needed to make it here. Meeting with one of our workers, we were able to connect him to Bissell services for resume writing and casual labour, as well as make him an appointment with Alberta Employment and Immigration to discuss his desire to return to school. All that was missing was the means to return home and attend his appointment for a chance at school and work. Through Donate-a-Ride, Bissell Centre was able to give the young man five tickets – one to go home, two for his appointment and two more for work.
By supporting Bissell Centre with bus tickets, this young man was able to receive funds to prevent his eviction, secure funding to return to school at NorQuest and obtain work through our Casual Labour Program to pay for food and transportation. Imagine – five bus tickets were all it took to prevent homelessness and secure a future.
“Thank you Bissell Centre, without your help with bus tickets I would never be able to keep all of my doctor’s appointment to stay alive.”
M.R.
“Without ID I couldn’t work. Without bus fare I couldn’t get my ID. Thank you for opening your hearts and the 2 tickets. I got a job now.”
L.G.
d coats and jackets in supportof BISSELL CENTRE. In return for your generosity to provide warmth to the homeless and those less fortunate, Liliana’s Boutique will reward you with $50 towards your new coat or fall fashion wardrobe purchase over $300. In addition, Michel Germain Perfumes will contribute samples of the Canadian fragrance “SéxÅ«al for Men” for every man’s coat donated.
