NKyTribune staff
The schedule is set for Be Concerned’s 50th annual Christmas Store, providing food, toys, clothing, hygiene items, cleaning supplies and household gifts. Be Concerned is a free food pantry currently providing food to about 720 low-income households.
The Christmas Store takes place at Be Concerned, located at 1100 Pike Street in Covington. Dates and times are December 5, from 3-6 p.m., December 6-8, and December 13-16 from 9 a.m. to noon daily.
The Christmas Store benefits 700 to 800 low-income families from Kenton, Campbell and Boone counties. Recipients are senior singles, the disabled, single-parent families and working poor – families whose breadwinners don’t work enough hours or at sufficient enough wage to cover all their needs.
In many cases, the gifts the Store provides will be the only Christmas many of these families have.
Since 1968 when it began as the Christmas Store, Be Concerned has helped low-income families celebrate Christmas and maintain economic stability throughout the year.
Just a couple of months after the Cincinnati Bengals launched their inaugural NFL season in the fall of 1968, a group of volunteers gathered in Covington, unaware that they, too, were about to pioneer a tri-state tradition that would still be going strong 50 years later.
Assembled by Sister of Charity Donna Kinney at the behest of Catholic Social Services of Northern Kentucky, the group’s mission was to provide Christmas baskets for the poor.
Kinney had accepted the challenge with one major caveat – rather than giving baskets away, she proposed to let the needy buy toys and clothing for a nominal fee.
“I wanted to provide help in a way that enabled customers to maintain their dignity as well as providing them a choice of gifts and items to meet their real needs,” she recalled years later.
Thus was born the Christmas Store. It has survived and thrived for five decades and now is one of the largest holiday help programs in the region.
Until 1988, Be Concerned was an all-volunteer organization. Even today, volunteers provide most of the day-to-day service. As a result, Be Concerned operates on one third the budget it would need with a fully paid staff.
Be Concerned now operates one of the largest food pantries in the region.
Be Concerned’s programs are supplemental and ongoing in nature so customers can minimize the need for emergency assistance and those who qualify for programs personally choose what they receive. For more information, click here.
Be Concerned