Albertan women have become ‘Wine Ninjas’ to bring joy to friends and neighbours

It began in Alberta, but the trend is spreading via a Facebook group that endeavours to spread the love across the country.

It's all to keep up the spirits and morale of a people who've been hit by the coronavirus pandemic, an economic crash, and mass flooding in Fort McMurray.

The gesture is simple: drop off a bottle of wine at a friend or neighbors' front steps, or to anyone who could use it in this dark time, and then the recipient will pay it forward and deliver a bottle of their own, according to CTV News.

"I love the positivity," said Shannon Stubbert, one of the original wine ninjas responsible for coming up with the idea. "It’s really uplifting in a time when things are really dark right now."

"We just want everyone to know you’re not alone in this," said Stubbert. "Times are hard right now and even if you can’t see us, you’re loved."

What began as a silly joke between two friends has now become a Facebook group that boasts more than 50,000 members, since its creation in early May. The two friends were frustrated with not being able to see each other due to social distancing so they invented a safe and legal way to stay connected.

"Women want to support each other, they want to do positive stories for each other and they’re loving getting out and being sneaky," said Stubbert. "They’re excited and being able to do it in a safe environment while still social distancing has just been great."

Since it began, people have been getting increasingly creative with their deliveries, such as dressing up as ninjas, sasquatches and unicorns and posting their sneaky deliveries to social media.

"I have been Ninja’d. Thank you for such a wonderful bunch of goodies! You made my day!" writes Patricia Kerr.

'“Alberta ladies rock We turned a pandemic into something we will look back on and smile," writes member Sharna Johnston.

Getting involved is rather simple, join the group, select the region where you live, provide your address and then wait to get "Ninja'd." Once you have received your bottle of wine, it's your turn to return the favour for somebody else.

The private Facebook group is plotting a major delivery in Fort McMurray for the end of May to show their support for a community that has endured major flooding, on top of the pandemic and a hurting economy.