Seven Bermuda families will likely have a brighter Christmas because of staff at Butterfield Corporate Trust and Fund Services.

Seventy-eight employees of the two divisions of Butterfield Bank got together to make up seven teams to participate in a division-wide holiday hamper challenge.

The challenge was the brainchild of Tania Kowalski, AVP, marketing for Butterfield Fund Services and Hope Johnson, business implementation administrator, who took their idea to Andrew Collins, managing director for Butterfield Fund Services for approval.

The goal for each team was to make the 'most useful' hamper ? with a nice prize going to the winning team courtesy of a discount from Miles Market.

Working with the Salvation Army, each team was given details of a family in need to build the hamper for. Although names were kept anonymous, each team knew the ages and genders of any children in the family ? a big help when it came to present buying.

Butterfield & Vallis also threw in a turkey for each hamper and Butterfield gave $50 to each team to help fund the effort.

Beyond that, each team was left to build the best basket they could ? a challenge they took to heart by donating a great deal of their own time and resources. For one team, that meant getting a homemade tablecloth made, three different kinds of homemade cookies baked, plus a crocheted blanket, bags of toys and a complete Christmas dinner.

Another team was able to get the bank's I.T. department to help them in securing a computer for their family. They topped that off with movie gift certificates, foodstuffs, toys, make-up and bath supplies, school supplies and more.

Judging the contest yesterday afternoon was Butterfield's president and chief executive officer Alan Thompson.

The winner was the Cupid team made up of 11 people whose hamper was designed as a sleigh with a large Santa at the reins.