From left Gaye Horn, Brenda Dorosz and Jen Shields received town council’s support Monday for their idea of The Giving Cupboard. People will be able to leave non-food items for those who are less fortunate. (Keith Lacey photo)
Sometimes in life it’s the small gestures that count and Osoyoos residents will soon be able to do their small part to help the less fortunate now that Town of Osoyoos council has officially endorsed the Giving Cupboard project.
A Giving Cupboard is a wooden cupboard and will hold items such as personal toiletries, pens, paper, stamped envelopes, hats, gloves and band aids.
Council, with co-operation from the Osoyoos and District Arts Council, has agreed to place the Giving Cupboard between two trees in front of the town’s planning and development office and the Osoyoos Art Gallery.
The items in the cupboard will available to anyone, local or visitors, to take without prejudice and with no questions asked.
People can donate the items directly into the cupboard.
Food items are discouraged due to health concerns and any food items that are dropped off will be given directly to the local food bank, said Barry Romanko, the town’s chief administrative officer, during a presentation to town council last week.
The Giving Cupboard project is the brainchild of Osoyoos residents Brenda Dorosz, Gaye Horn and Jen Shiels, who asked council for support of the project about a month ago.
Three Osoyoos women wanted to make a difference in their community and they were thrilled with council’s support to set up a donation box in town to help the less fortunate.
Dorosz and Horn told council they have a small group of volunteers in place who are willing to donate their time to check and stock the Giving Cupboard when necessary.
They have also applied for a small community grant through the Community Foundation of the South Okanagan to start up the project and provide the initial items, said Dorosz.
A young man who grew up in Osoyoos, but now lives in Vernon, has volunteered to build the donation cupboard as quickly as possible, she said.
The Osoyoos Arts Council fully supports this project and agrees the proposed location is ideal, she said.
Dorosz, who is best known in town as the leader of the Save Our Schools committee formed this spring to save Osoyoos Secondary School from closure, thanked council profusely for throwing their support behind this project.
It’s expected the Giving Cupboard should be operational within two weeks now that the final location has been selected and endorsed by council, she said.
The wooden donation box will be roughly two feet high and two feet wide and 18 inches deep and be attached to a concrete or cement post and residents could simply bring items and place them inside, allowing those who need assistance to take items they might need without any problems, said Dorosz.
Mayor Sue McKortoff thanked the ladies for trying to make a difference and she believes The Giving Cupboard would be well used in this community.
Coun. Mike Campol congratulated the women for spearheading this initiative and he’s confident the program will be a great success.
Dorosz said she, Horn and Shiels will make another public appeal asking local residents to start making donations once the box is built and installed.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
