By Melissa Coward
It might be hard to believe but here at The Salvation Army East City we are already thinking ahead to Christmas! In particular of course our well-known Christmas Appeal.
This is a time of the year we are very passionate about; doing our best to assist those in our community who are struggling with Christmas.
We are committed in our mission to create a brighter Christmas for families within our community and to give them a Christmas where they are not having to worry about how they are going to put a meal on the table or whether their children will join the thousands of others unwrapping gifts on Christmas Day. Our aim is to provide 100 families with both special Christmas Food Hamper and Christmas gifts for children under 12.
It is fair to say that the last two years have been a challenge for everyone with the words Covid and Pandemic being added to our vocabulary. It has hit our country in a huge way and east Auckland is no exception.
The Salvation Army East City saw a huge increase in the number of families needing food assistance on a regular basis though out the lockdowns and beyond. We are expecting there to be a huge demand when we launch our Christmas Appeal and we do not want to be in a situation where we must turn anyone away.
We feel very blessed to have had the support of our community who give so generously year after year to our cause. Once again, we call upon our generous donors to help us through monetary donations, non-perishable food (including festive items) and new gifts for children.
We had such a high demand on gifts last year that we ran out of toys so we know this is an area where we will struggle again this year and we all know there is nothing sadder for a child than to think Santa has forgotten them. Please keep this is mind if you can support us in any way.
As we head into early November our Red Christmas appeal bins will be distributed throughout our community. Look out for them in the local libraries, shopping malls and The Salvation Army Family stores.
We are also continuing our corporate partnerships. Food can be donated at your local Countdown Stores and The Kmart Christmas Wishing Tree will also be a collection point for toy donations from late November. Any other donations can be dropped off at The Salvation Army East City located at 37-45 Wellington Street, Howick, Wednesday and Friday from 10am – 1pm or other times by appointment. Please contact us on 535 0847.
Thank you in advance for helping make sure that Christmas 2022 will be a blessed season for everyone within our local community.
- Melissa Coward is Corp Administrator at The Salvation Army East City, Howick
