Several charitable organizations in Montreal are getting into the holiday spirit.
The Welcome Hall Mission held its annual Christmas party over the weekend. Over 2,500 underprivileged children and their families were welcomed by the mission, and they all left with gifts from Santa Claus himself.
Welcome Hall CEO Sam Watts tells CTV the mission gets around 500 new clients every month, many of them having recently come to the Montreal area. He says many families are forced to choose between paying rent and paying for groceries.
The NDG Food Depot was also out collecting donations of non-perishable food items and money. Food Depot program director Kim Fox says about a quarter of NDG residents live below the poverty line, and the need only increases around the holidays.
AJ Frumovitz was among the near 500 volunteers and recently moved to Montreal from Los Angeles. She says she's never seen as much community spirit, and is happy to have taken part in helping out.
- With files from CTV Montreal