Donations bring Christmas hope to many
The Christmas spirit is alive and well as thousands of people from schools, churches and businesses roll up their sleeves to participate in ANGLICARE Sydney’s Toys ‘n’ Tucker program.
Toys ‘n’ Tucker is part of ANGLICARE’s annual Christmas Appeal where donations of Christmas food and toys are collected and packed into hampers for families who would otherwise go without.
This year ANGLICARE is attempting to individually pack and deliver Christmas hampers to almost 5,000 families in Sydney and Wollongong.
Over the past few months participants have been raiding their cupboards, knocking on doors and going into the community to collect food and toys so that others won’t miss out on a Christmas full of cheer.
The result has transformed the ANGLICARE Mt Druitt Community Care Centre into a Santa’s warehouse as thousands of donations of food and toys pour in.
“Christmas for most families is a time of happiness and celebration. But for thousands of families it is marked by financial stress. It can also be a very lonely time where people are confronted with broken relationships,” said ANGLICARE Sustainable Living Manager, Felicia Fitzgerald.
“The Christmas food hampers and toys relieve a bit of financial strain. But just as importantly, they show families in need that there are people in our community who are concerned for their welfare,” added Ms Fitzgerald.
Every year ANGLICARE’s Emergency Relief program provides financial and food assistance to thousands of families and individuals who find it difficult to make ends meet.
Working to break the cycle of disadvantage by building clients’ personal capacity and resilience, the program offers financial assistance and counselling, advocacy and referral services as well as food parcels and help paying general utilities, rent and other bills.
