Holiday Help: Catholic Social Services preps for Christmas food basket pickup
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — As Christmas is just around the corner, Catholic Social Services urged families to act quickly.
Their annual Lincoln Food Market Christmas basket program is in its final days for reservations.
“I’ve heard of one family that faced the decision of whether or not to get Christmas presents for their kids or have a decent Christmas dinner,” said Development Officer John Soukup. “We don’t want families to have to go through that kind of decision-making.”
He said the need continues to grow, and the baskets can make a real difference.
“They’ll get a bag, most of them decorated by some grade school students with Christmas messages on them, something inspiring, just the kids making sure these families have another reminder of what Christmas is all about,” Soukup said.
The baskets are filled with holiday meals featuring turkey or ham to help families stretch their resources during one of the most expensive times of the year.
“We’ve had so many people facing the rising costs of food, the rising cost of rent, utilities, and even medical expenses.” Soukup said, “Oftentimes they’ll put food or holiday costs to the side so that they can have these necessities.”
He said each basket represents more than just food; it’s a reminder that the community cares.
“It’s a community effort, and we couldn’t do any of this without the people in the community helping us out to give the food to the people in need.”
