The Christmas Cheer depot has a new home, for this year at least.
By mid-November, volunteers will be working out of the former Transcom building at 24 Second Line West, said Diane Marshall, Christmas Cheer convenor.
“We’re fortunate, the new owners of the building have graciously allowed us to be there,” Marshall told SooToday Tuesday.
“They have future plans for the building but they will not begin with those until we’re done.”
The building’s ownership changed over the summer, and plans to operate Christmas Cheer out of the new location solidified last week, Marshall said.
“It’s wonderful, because to find a large enough site for our operation is getting more difficult…we knew last year that we would be hunting for a new building,” Marshall said.
Last year, Christmas Cheer operated out of the former Alexander Henry high school site, which is now being converted into a French Immersion school by the Algoma District School Board (ADSB).
Prior to that, Christmas Cheer ran its operation for several years out of the former Sir James Dunn site.
That site has recently been demolished.
“We usually had public sites like a school site so the cost of utilities would be covered, and the owners of this building are doing the same for us, so we’re very, very fortunate.”
“It’s big, it’s airy, it’s bright…it’s going to be great for our volunteers,” Marshall said, aware Christmas Cheer will have to find another home for Christmas 2017.
“We’ll have to scout and see if people are willing to give up their building for a couple of months,” Marshall said.
Finalized details regarding this year’s Christmas Cheer depot, such as key dates, hours of operation and contact information will be made known in a soon-to-come, official press release, Marshall said.