Christmas Hamper Appeal 2016

After 9 weeks of hard work by the Rotary Club of Wakefield Chantry volunteers, the journalists on the Wakefield Express, the staff of the Community Awareness Programme Charity in Market Street, staff and pupils from Ackworth School, the staff at the Early Help Centres and the support of hundreds of Express readers, businesses and groups all around the greater Wakefield area, the last of the over 1000 Hampers was delivered to a family this week.

The project, started back in October, was to help over 1000 families in our area have a merry Christmas that they might otherwise not have been able to have. We all want to have a Christmas filled with fun and laughter, and enjoying good Christmas fayre but unfortunately that is not always possible for everyone. 

In 2014 we managed to help over 500 families, in 2015 we helped over 800 families and this year the magical figure was to help over 1000. Well we did do that with masses of help from our many supporters. In the end we made and delivered 1053 hampers to families in this area who really needed that help. 

Laura and her 4 children are typical of the families who have benefitted from the hamper programme. Laura, who was subjected to significant domestic violence, has made a fresh start and is bringing up her children as a single parent family with some help from her mum, Dawn. Nonetheless it is extremely difficult and she receives help from the Early Help organisation. However the hamper came as a wonderful surprise at this festive time of the year.  

After receiving the hamper and some small gifts for the children, also from the donations by Express readers, Laura said “We would all like to say a big thank you to the people who have donated food, hampers and gifts to the Xmas Appeal. Christmas will be much more special thanks to all of you.”