Edmonton Elks help select, wrap presents for Strathcona County families

Edmonton Elks members volunteering at the Strathcona Christmas Bureau on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025. (Galen McDougall/CTV News Edmonton)

The Strathcona Christmas Bureau was busy Thursday, with volunteers, including some Edmonton Elks, selecting and wrapping gifts for holiday hampers.

Players and staff helped put together hampers for families east of Edmonton, trying to make sure everyone will have some holiday cheer.

“We’re not community-owned anymore, but we’re still very heavily involved in the community,” said Aaron Grymes, the defensive backs coach for the Edmonton Elks.

“A lot of people, whether it’s here in Sherwood Park or in Edmonton, spend their hard-earned money to come watch us play during the season. I think that it’s important for us in the offseason to make sure we’re giving back to the community that gives so much to us.”

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The Elks are just a few of the people helping out the bureau, which has a full volunteer calendar, according to the organization’s co-chair.

“We had to raise our fundraising goal for this year, just because we do expect a little bit of an increase in demand due to the economic climate right now,” said Gayle McCarthy.

“It’s amazing to me, every year, how the community comes alongside and just helps us out.”

As an Elks fan, McCarthy said she was happy just to see the team, but they help the organization in other ways on top of these volunteer hours.

“They amplify our message as well, they use their networks to talk about the Strathcona Christmas Bureau and then their friends tell friends, and it’s just it grows our visibility a lot,” she said.

Last year, the organization served 600 families, around 2,200 people total. This year, the Christmas bureau is trying to raise $150,000 for local families.

“At a time where a lot of people are spending time with family and loved ones, whether they’re eating meals or whether they are opening toys and sharing gifts, I want to make sure that everybody has that experience, to the best of their ability,” Grymes said.

The hampers will be delivered on Dec. 13 and donations of cash, gift cards or new, unwrapped toys can be dropped off at the Strathcona Christmas Bureau until Nov. 29. Online donations are also accepted.