Loraas Business Food Drive. (Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Alyssa Rudolph

food bank

Battlefords supporting another year of the Empty Stocking Fund

Nov 26, 2025 | 2:04 PM

Residents in the Battlefords can help those in need this holiday season by donating in many different ways.

Holiday events and fundraisers around the Battlefords will help support Battleford District Food and Resource Centre’s (BDFRC) yearly fundraiser, the Empty Stocking Fund. The fundraiser helps to provide Christmas hampers and gifts for youth to those needing extra help.

Executive director of BDFRC said last year; the organization helped 1,160 people during the holidays, 53 per cent of whom were children.

“The community support of the Empty Stocking Fund brings hope and joy to families who need it; donations go a long way,” said Erin Katerynych. “We are really happy to be here to help those who are in need.”

As of Tuesday, the BDFRC registered 125 families for their Empty Stocking Fund Christmas hampers and is planning to provide hampers for up to 450 families that register by the deadline on December 5.

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Carol Festival

On December 16, the BDFRC will host an evening of carol singing, featuring local choirs and musicians. The event will take place at the Third Avenue United Church, 1301 102nd Street starting at 7 p.m. There will be no charge for admission, but food, cash and new gift donations can be made at the door, proceeds going to the Empty Stocking Fund. Each year the food bank raises roughly $1,000 during the event in cash donations which is used to stock food at the center.

Angel Tree

Until December 16, customers at the North Battleford Walmart can donate Christmas gifts to youth in the community by grabbing a tag from the angel tree, purchasing gift donations, and dropping them off at customer service. Donors can choose the age and gender for whom they would like to purchase gifts.

Loraas Business Food Drive

Loraas and BDFRC are partnering for another year of their Business Food Drive with Santa’s sleigh. Local businesses are invited to help the food bank reach their goal of collecting 10,000 pounds of non-perishable food items. Last year there were 5,741 pounds of food items donated. The BDFRC hopes this number will be closer to their goal for this winter to supply food to the community for the next few months. Businesses wanting to be included in the food drive on Dec. 18 can contact Loraas’ customer service.

Cram The Ambulance

The annual WPD ambulance toy drive officially kicked off on November 17 and will run until December 17. The organization’s goal is to fill three ambulances full of donated toys over the month. All donations are given to the BDFRC to help provide gifts to youth for their Empty Stocking Fund.

Coats for Kids

BDFRC continues to collect jackets for their Coats for Kids program. Clothing is handed out to people in need throughout the winter months. Currently, the center is in need of large sized outerwear for teenagers and adults.

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alyssa.rudolph@pattisonmedia.com