By Renee Wood
St Brigid’s Care Group is busy working away, creating more than 70 hampers and care packages for people in need this Christmas.
The group formed in the 1990s and each year dedicates weeks to producing beautiful hampers, toy packages, and meals to local families and residents.
Coordinator Maree Jefcott said the group is run solely by volunteers and relies on the community’s support to fund its operation.
“It’s just the most beautiful time of the year – we love it. We’ll be busy now until the 15th of December at least, and then Christmas meals going out on the 20th of December,” Ms Jefcott said.
“You just find people that don’t have gifts for their children or for grandchildren, so we like to give them special things that they can give to their family.”
The Christmas donations are an extra addition of what the group does weekly, providing bread and meals, and over the past two years the need for support has risen.
“We do bread and meal deliveries and you catch up with people along their journey and you just hear their stories.
“Plus we work with the school and they let us know. There are families there that have struggled especially through Covid, they’ve had a really tough year.”
The care group has grown to provide around 200 meals weekly through business donations over the past 20 years, and the community has always stepped up to provide donations of food and toys each Christmas.
“One of our beautiful ladies passed away, Jackie, and every year she did Christmas shopping from the start to the end. So she’s been an angel. It’s just a gift that we love to share on to others.”
The group is still accepting donations to help reach more locals in need.
“We don’t have any funding so we rely on community help and our own help to do what we do.”
