CBC's Christmas Sing-In to raise money for West Island Community Shares

This year's CBC Montreal charity drive and Christmas Sing-In will benefit West Island Community Shares.

The 37thedition of the Sing-In will be held Dec. 11 at3 p.m.at the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul.

Last year's drive raised more than $50,000 for the NDG Food Depot.

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This year's fundraiser will focus on West Island Community Shares, a group that distributes funding towards40 different non-profit groups on the West Island.

LeanneBayer,the group's executive director, says its important to provide a wide range ofservices forpeople in crisis.

"We have three food banks that we're supporting," said Bayer.

"We have organizations that are running breakfast programs for kids from families that don't have enough food to give them a proper breakfast before they go off to school."

Pockets of poverty in West Island

Bayer says there are 13 areas on the West Island that areconsidered to be pockets of poverty, something that's not often discussed.

"We're really putting a call out and trying to get the West Island to realize that we have these issues facing us," she said.

Daybreak Montreal4:02CBC Montreal's Charity Sing-In 2016

Shari Okeke reports on CBC Montreal supporting the West Island Community Shares for the 2016 Sing-In Charity Drive.

Bayers says one in five West Islanders are benefiting fromservices supported by West Island Community Shares.

"That's 20 per cent of our population that turns to one of these groups every year for support," she said.

"It's 35,000 youth and we've seen that number climbing every year."

Breakfast fundraiser launch

The organization launchedits ownannual fundraising drive on Friday Oct. 21, with a community breakfast.

Volunteers, including from CBC's Do Crew,served all the staplesbacon, lots of it, fruit salad, orange juice and more atLes 3 Brasseurs on Brunswick Boulevard in Pointe-Claire starting at 7 a.m.