Holiday Gift Boxes for the McKenzie Community
With the holidays fast approaching and winter drawing in, our thoughts turn to the hundreds of families who have been affected by the Holiday Farm Fire.
2020 has already been a tough year, and with a spike in COVID cases forcing new restrictions on gatherings in Oregon, this would have been a strange and challenging Thanksgiving.
Add to that the fact that many of those families have lost their homes and are either living in temporary accommodation such as RVs or even tents, or still stuck in hotel rooms, and it becomes clear why it’s so important to support them in any way possible.
Although we cannot solve many of the pressing issues and challenges they face, the McKenzie CDC wanted to find a way to bring a little bit of cheer to those families during this Holiday Season, so we have put together some gift baskets which we’re looking to distribute to residents at the beginning of December.
Below are some of the items that will be included. We wanted to support local businesses and also showcase the lovely local produce that our valley has to offer – hopefully a reminder that better times will come around again. Many of those listed here have generously donated goods and/or time to make this happen, and it’s a testament to the strength and goodwill of our community.
If your family is one of those affected by the Holiday Farm Fire, you can sign up to receive a gift box at one of the Relief Centers or get in touch with us via email contact@mckenziecommunity.org
Those looking to contribute towards relief efforts can help by sponsoring a gift box and donating via PayPal using the button below selecting Holiday Gift Boxes in the dropdown menu.
Sponsor a Holiday Gift Box
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Seneca Sawmill
Huge thanks goes to Seneca for sponsoring restaurant vouchers to be included in the boxes. Participating restaurants span the entire McKenzie Valley. It is wonderful that those local businesses, which have been affected by the COVID pandemic as well as the Holiday Farm Wildfires, will get a welcome boost while providing some much-needed comfort for our community! Each box will contain a voucher for one of the following:
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Pacific Flavor Blueberries
Pacific Flavor is a Pacific Northwest company that believes in enhancing and promoting the indigenous, sustainable resources of the region. These blueberries are harvested at their peak of ripeness, hand-sorted and cooked in small batches to preserve the integrity of the fruit.
Saving Grace Cakes
The hand-made treats included in this box were baked by Tiffany Lemmerz. Her family bought their home in Blue River in June 2020, and lost it to the Holiday Farm Fire three months later. She hopes to grow her business and help the community to rebuild.
Organic Redneck Growers
Organic Redneck Growers is a small, organic, family-owned farm that has been growing fruits and vegetables for their friends, neighbors and farm stand in the McKenzie Valley for over 20 years. The box will contain a voucher for their U-pick in the summer.
Honey Paddle Farm
Honey Paddle is a 13-acre apiary featuring the sale of delicious bee-crafted honey. Each year, Honey Paddle growers experiment with planting different cover crops for the bees to craft delightful versions of McKenzie honey. Check out the enclosed envelope for a voucher to sample their next honey harvest in 2021.
Laurel Foods Hazelnuts
Laurel Foods sources delicious Oregon hazelnuts from growers throughout Oregon, including along the McKenzie River. They produce high-quality hazelnut products at their facility in the foothills of the Chehalem Mountains. It is owned and operated by the Denfeld’s, a seventh-generation hazelnut growing family.
GloryBee Honeystix
GloryBee has a vision for a healthy world where bees and people thrive. Since 1975, they have been pursuing that vision by
providing high quality, ethically sourced ingredients that nourish
people and the planet.
2020 Festival of Lights
The holiday gift boxes will contain a small string of LED lights. All together that will be nearly 3,000 feet of lights to help bring some twinkle to the McKenzie this holiday season.
McKenzieStrong Face Masks
Masks have become the new essential item, so we’re including a Handmade washable face mask in each box, hand-sewn by a local Vida resident who has also been displaced by the fire.
McKenzie River Stickers
These amazing 3 in. × 2.5 in vinyl stickers have been designed by Wild Child Brand and are currently on sale at Etsy to help raise funds to support the fire recovery efforts.
Bricks and Minifigs Eugene
We partnered with this amazing store to include some LEGO in the holiday boxes for families that have children under 12, so be sure to let us know if you’re one of those! We’re also looking to see whether we can put together a virtual “build party” to give kids (and parents) a bit of a break while complying with the latest COVID guidelines, stay tuned!
Special thanks to Dianna Kaloust from Packaging Specialties, Roggy Pflug and Christie Rose at Columbia Corrugated Box Company Inc. who are providing the boxes and packing materials, Funk/Levis for their help in design, and to Bourland Printing.
