The Christmas hampers were being prepared for pick-up Thursday as roughly 150 volunteers packed the boxes at the Salvation Army Citadel on Gordon Street over two different shifts.
Hamper program coordinator Beverley Broughton said that this year there were 1,020 Christmas hampers going out to families in the Guelph area.
They were to be picked up by families that registered through a variety of community organizations earlier.
Turkeys were to be delivered on Friday morning and Guelph firefighters would be helping unload the turkeys and chickens. Firefighters would also be on hand to carry the hampers out to vehicles for the clients, Broughton said.
A number of organizations collaborate on the hamper program in Guelph through the Christmas Holiday Bureau, ensuring as many people get signed up as needed and that there are no repeat clients through different means.
Broughton said the 1,020 hampers going out is roughly the same as last year. A few years ago it was up in the 1,400 range, she said.
For the past 15 years the hamper program has included "cultural" hampers that recognize the dietary needs of some of Guelph's immigrant population.
Those hampers get chickens instead of turkeys, rice and chick peas.
