‘It’s wonderful’: Chatham brothers keep collecting empties for a cause
Brett and Derek Gore have been collecting empty beer cans and liquor bottles for over a decade and a half to buy toys to donate to children without gifts during the holiday season.
Their family says on any given day they could find a bag of empties in the driveway, not knowing who dropped them off.
“It's gotten bigger and bigger and bigger and it's great,” said dad, Bob Gore.
“It’s just people's kindness. You know, it's just the positivity and giving back and we've tried to always instill in the boys people need help.”
He said it all started when the brothers were teenagers at The Children’s Treatment Centre of Chatham-Kent, delivering no more than ten gifts.
In 2021, they donated $8,174 worth of toys to the Salvation Army Chatham-Kent, nearly $3,000 more than the year before.
Brothers Brett and Derek Gore at their home in Chatham, Ont. on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor) “Last year was incredible,” Gore said. “But I think COVID had something to do with that people couldn't leave their home so maybe instead of a beer they had two or three or I don't know but it was crazy.”
Gore continued, “with our neighbours, friends, people throughout the county, Windsor, London, Port Lambton, Sarnia, Wallaceburg, people calling dropping things off, it's just gotten bigger and bigger and bigger and without their support this would really never have happened. But it's wonderful.”
Mom, Linda Gore, told CTV News the family never sets a goal other than to bring cheer to those finding it difficult during the holidays.
“People will message the boys and say ‘can you come pick up empties?’” she said. “So off they truck!”
“Some people even count the cans for us and they put little tags on and say you know there's 100 bottles in this or 100 cans. This is awesome. Thank you so much people, really.”
The Gores explained the toy collection often outgrows the crawlspace in their home before they’re able to deliver them, saying they now use a storage space offered by Community Living Chatham-Kent.
Anyone looking to help with the cause can drop empties off in their south Chatham driveway at 155 Copperfield Crescent.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
He didn't trust police but sought their help anyway. Two days later, he was dead
Jameek Lowery was among more than 330 Black people who died after police stopped them with tactics that aren’t supposed to be deadly, like physical restraint and use of stun guns, The Associated Press found.
Fluid in eye cells can 'boil' if you watch the eclipse without protection: expert
Millions of people in parts of Eastern and Atlantic Canada will be able to see the rare solar eclipse happening on April 8. But they should only look up if they have proper eye protection, experts say.
NEW More unauthorized products for skin, sexual enhancement, recalled: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency recalled various items this week, including torches, beef biltong and unauthorized products related to skin care and sexual enhancement.
Where is the worst place for allergy sufferers in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
Do these exercises for core strength if you can't stomach doing planks
Planks are one of the most effective exercises for strengthening your midsection, as they target all of your major core muscles: the transverse abdominis, rectus abdominis, external obliques and internal obliques. Yet despite the popularity of various 10-minute plank challenges, planking is actually one of the most dreaded core exercises, according to many fitness experts.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Angst and calls for resting places as Surrey, B.C., pet cemetery development continues
A single headstone is all that remains of dozens of markers for long-buried pets in a subdivision in Surrey’s Newton neighbourhood, where a half-acre parcel bears a large sign announcing the proposed construction of new homes.
Polar ice is melting and changing Earth's rotation. It's messing with time itself
One day in the next couple of years, everyone in the world will lose a second of their time. Exactly when that will happen is being influenced by humans, according to a new study, as melting polar ice alters the Earth’s rotation and changes time itself.