Canadian internet personality Stewart Reynolds, AKA Brittlestar, is making it easier than ever to support local shelters, including a couple in York Region this Christmas.
In 2020 he launched the Christmas Wish Tree website as a platform for local shelters to add their Amazon wishlists and for supporters to easily shop and send them what they need in a secure and confidential way.
"It was kind of a response to what was happening in the pandemic and the idea that everyone was shopping online and how you can maybe use that to the advantage of some of the shelters that were maybe not going to get a lot of traffic," Reynolds said.
The whole process is meant to be very easy, so much so that the website's tagline is Pour a drink. Click a link. Save Christmas.
"For the truly, truly lazy like myself, you still get to do something good," he said.
Now in its third year, shelters throughout Canada, the United States and even the United Kingdom have their wishlists on the site. That includes three in York Region: Yellow Brick House, Blue Door, and Blue Door's Construct Program.
The wishlists allow shelters to add items they need or specifically ask clients what they want for Christmas. Customers can then go through the links, add an item to their cart and buy it. The item will then be shipped to the shelters.
"I love the targeted giving. I'm a big fan of that," Reynolds said.
He said some people have an issue with Amazon and he understands that, but one thing they do really well is fast shipping and the confidential wishlist set up.
Reynolds doesn't make any money off running the website. To help spread the word about it, he posts on his social media pages, often with comedic videos to capture people's attention. This year was Die Hard themed.
"I thought maybe it'd get more attention if I just go into some sort of contentious area of the internet. 'Is Die Hard a Christmas movie?' is a good contentious area," he said.
The video features Reynolds wearing a Santa suit in a ventilation duct — supplied by an HVAC company in Stratford — holding a lighter to deliver the iconic lines from the movie "come out to the coast, we'll get together, have a few laughs."
He then speaks about how Christmas can be stressful, especially for people in shelters or those who are trying to build a safer, better life for themselves.
Of course, he ends it by saying, "It's totally a Christmas movie" of Die Hard.
You can support the shelters through Christmas Wish Tree online.
