Making A Difference
A Bradford Christmas is a charitable foundation that was founded in 2019. Since 2019, A Bradford Christmas has choosen a different charity to fundraise for across Ontario. To date, we have raised over $75,000 for charities across Ontario.
Our mission is to shine a light on worthy charities doing incredible work in our community and to inspire joy, while encouraging the younger generation to be involved in community work.
OUR STORY
How it Started
In 2019, Emily and Sarah, at the ages of 14 and 15 years old respectively, started their now registered charity, A Bradford Christmas.
Emily started her first business at 12 years old, a local concession stand that she hosted at almost every event in their town, Bradford West Gwillimbury. At the same time Sarah was a very active volunteer in community groups and local events.
The summer of 2019, the sisters thought about how they could give back to their community in a bigger way. They chose to combine their interests: Emily’s business mind, Sarah’s love for volunteerism, and their shared passion for community work to create A Bradford Christmas!
For our first fundraiser, we worked with the Bradford Helping Hand Food Bank. Every year the Bradford Helping Hand Food Bank gives out Christmas Hampers to their clients. Each Christmas Hamper has everything needed for a Christmas dinner, plus a week’s worth of groceries. We wanted to add to the food bank’s Christmas Hampers and asked the food bank if we could give away Festive Hampers; explaining every Festive Hampers will have 17 non-perishable foods, plus pet treats if applicable, whilst taking into consideration specific dietary needs.
After the Helping Hand Food Bank said “yes!” to our proposal, we immediately started writing letters to corporate companies asking for food donations. We wrote to almost 100 corporate companies!
That was how A Bradford Christmas began!
Meet Our Co-founders
Sarah Dahlgren
Co-founder of A Bradford Christmas
Emily Dahlgren
Co-founder of A Bradford Christmas
Awards and Recognition
Awards:
• Junior Citizen of the Year Award 2019, Emily Dahlgren
• Junior Citizen of the Year Award 2020, Sarah Dahlgren
• Barrie Women in Business Awards – Youth Entrepreneur, 2024
Recognition:
• Certificate of Recognition from MP Scot Davidson, 2020
• Mayor of BWG’s Certificate of Acknowledgement, 2021
• Letter of Recognition from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 2021
Join Our Team!
Board Member
Charity Registration Number: 724684006 RR 0001