The Big Sandy Mountaineer -

The Chouteau County Angel Basket Program provides in-need families with food for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, as well as Christmas gifts for children in the homes. The deadline for signing up is November 1st and it is approaching quickly. For years, the program has provided families in our area with groceries, a gift certificate, ham and beef roasts, and (sometimes in years past) turkeys. The program also is associated with the Angel Trees, which provides gifts for kids in the families of basket recipients. For children who are not taken care of by gifts through Angel Tree, the basket program purchases gifts. The program is of particular importance this year, given the financial strain families have endured in recent years.

The Angel Baskets’ Facebook announcement explains that the program is for families “in need of assistance due to low income or short term circumstances that have left you short on making ends meet.” The announcement also clarifies the eligibility requirements: “As a reminder this is only open to families in the Fort Benton/Chouteau County area. We will not call you and tell you we rejected your application based off of your physical address-if you have questions regarding your eligibility, please reach out to us. This program is designed to help families in need in our local community. The Angel Tree Gifts are meant for children in your home/custody that are under the age of 18 or still attending high school if they are 18.”

Interested families can fill out the application paperwork online. For families with children, visit this link: https://form.jotform.com/232557756986072. For families without children, visit this link: https://form.jotform.com/232557587871067

The Angel Basket program is one of the activities that the Chouteau County Women’s Club sponsors every year. The committee itself runs the program. According to the committee, the program has been in place since 1995, though it may have started before then. The Big Sandy Food Bank began its involvement in distributing the baskets to the local community in 2016, though the distribution of food baskets began before then.

For more information or to contact the Chouteau County Angel Committee, visit the “Angel Committee/Chouteau County“ Facebook page or email them at ccangels@3rivers.net.