The second-ever Soap for Hope was nothing short of incredible.
Mounds of donations, ranging from dish soap to body wash, were brought to Pharmasave in Steinbach by generous community members.
The dozens of bins, packed tightly with hygiene product, all going directly to Steinbach Community Outreach (SCO). At final count, 62 plastic bins and cardboard boxes of donations were collected.
@steinbach_online Voice of Irene Kroeker, Founder of Steinbach Community Outreach
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Tammy, a volunteer in SCO's donation area, says this will be a huge help to individuals and families in need.
"You guys helping us by donating soap, (means) we get to give that to the families that are in real need. We have children that need clothing washed for school... and hygiene is so important to keep germs away, and just makes you feel so good," she says.
"Just a little bit of soap and a smile can do so much change in a person's life, you would not believe it."
Madeleine Thiessen, executive director of SCO, says dish soap is an excellent example of how important soap can be.
"You can use dish soap for pretty much anything. People have come in when we've run out of laundry detergent, they come in and use the dish soap for laundry detergent, they use it for shampoo, for cleaning their bodies if they have to," she says.
She says the organization creates hygiene packages for the people they serve, and gives them out once a month.
"They can pick out three items from our hygiene room, and very often it will be liquid dish soap, body wash, and whatever else that they need. Laundry detergent is a big one. We don't very often have laundry detergent but when we do we can give that out," she says.
Steinbach Community Outreach Founder Irene Kroeker says the sheer value of the donations that came in on Thursday is astounding.
"If you go shopping, you know how much it all costs, so we are very hopeful that we can use some of our donation dollars now in order to help people directly. And also we're hoping that it will help them with their finances as well.
Kroeker says they are hoping these donations last between six and ten months.
Last year, about 200 families came to the organization each month for the packages.
Tammy says this just goes to show the demand, and the significance of a drive like Soap for Hope.
"We need the soap so that they can take care of their family just like you take care of your family," she says.
Kroeker notes the generosity of the community never fails to amaze.
"You know over 17 years that we've been doing this, we are amazed at the generosity of Steinbach and all the people that are in it. Everyone would love to help in some way, and they have been helping so much and we are so grateful for that, and we thank you all in Steinbach [and area] for doing this."
Written with files from Carly Koop and Kenton Dyck
A gallery of moments from the second-ever Soap for Hope: