York Regional Police spread holiday cheer with Holiday Heroes campaign
York Regional police are teaming up with the victim services of York Region to give back to victims and their families over the holidays.
This week marked the second week of the police service's Holiday Heroes campaign, which sees police collect big box items and deliver them to families in need.
"It's overwhelming for families because they think we're going to hand them a couple gift bags," said Deb Phillips, volunteer manager for Victim Services of York Region. "We had a lady the other day say she was in tears. She said she had no idea her car would be packed. Everybody is so generous."
In addition to the campaign's sponsor of the Salvation Army, it incorporates victim services to specifically give victims of crime a needed boost through the region.
"These are people who've obviously been through so much already," said Carey Rutledge, Special events coordinator for York Regional Police Service. "So they get a one-time sponsorship to give them a hand up, to give them a better opportunity and to get them off their feet."
York Regional Police Deputy Chief Alvaro Almeida said the idea behind giving back to victims, in particular, is about building community relationships.
"Because our officers are not in uniform, that really is just to not add any more trauma to the families," he said. "In terms of us, it's important we make those good knocks [on doors] and see their expressions on their faces."
Campaign organizers said they're still looking to have more families sponsored before the holiday campaign wraps up.
The Holiday Heroes campaign helps roughly 3,000 families in York Region annually.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
'Tactical evacuations' underway near Fort Nelson, B.C., as wildfires encroach
The BC Wildfire Service says 'tactical evacuations' began Friday near Fort Nelson, B.C., due to an out-of-control wildfire that has grown rapidly since it was discovered earlier in the afternoon.
Snowbirds in Vancouver for puck-drop flyby as Canucks face Oilers
The Canadian Forces Snowbirds will be performing a flyover across downtown Vancouver at the start of tonight's Stanley Cup playoff game between the Canucks and the Edmonton Oilers.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.