Services
Since 1940, the Christmas Bureau has maintained one tradition – providing a festive meal and coordination of Christmas giving to Edmontonians in need at Christmastime through the promotion of the spirit of Christmas caring and sharing in the City of Edmonton.
In 2021, 35,904 individuals were provided a festive meal of which 13,771 were children under the age of 12 and 4,796 were teens aged 13 to 17.
About
In 1940, the Edmonton Council of Social Agencies formed a Christmas Committee to coordinate the Christmas hamper programs. The goal was to have a standard between agencies to bring a measure of uniformity to the distribution of Christmas Cheer for the first time and ensure everyone who received help was getting adequate coverage. The Council office became the centre for the “Christmas Exchange” and continued under various names until 1973 when the Christmas Bureau of Edmonton registered as a separate society to continue on the great work they still do today.
Christmas Bureau of Edmonton helps on multiple fronts:
Non-denominational and accessible to all Edmontonians in need, it ensure anyone who needs an assistance during the holidays can get it.
Connector of over 90 social service agencies, they provide those in need a one stop application process for Christmas services. Client information is compiled by the Christmas Bureau into a database to provide food gift cards to accommodate all dietary needs.
