Media Centre

Spreading Christmas cheer for families

Publish Date: 22/02/2008
Author: Marketing and Communications Dept.

In the lead-up to Christmas Abercare asked the local community for help in providing children in their care with a Christmas worth remembering.

The response was fantastic with an influx of gifts and monetary donations from the community to assist with Abercare’s Christmas party and Santa Shop.

At Christmas time many of the families Abercare cares for find their financial hardships become heightened and instead of being a time of joy it can be a time of stress and isolation. It is great that together, as a community, we can assist in lightening their load and giving them some happy Christmas memories.

Children’s Christmas party

The combination of Santa, elves, clowns, animals, a jumping castle, face-painting and SES vehicles equalled a party worth remembering for children who attended Abercare’s Christmas party.

The party is an annual event held especially for the children and families that Abercare cares for. One of the highlights was the balloon-animal making clown with florescent-pink hair! The animal farm was also a hit with animals of all shapes and sizes for children to hold and pat.

To the dismay of many, there were no pony rides this year due to the equine flu, but there was an exciting replacement. The State Emergency Service volunteers provided a miniature SES vehicle that escorted children around the party, and for those who wished to get an extra taste of life as a SES volunteer, there were also opportunities to test SES equipment and check out their life size truck!

The day was made possible with the generosity of Melbourne’s Fancy Dress who provided costumes, Bunning’s Warehouse that arranged face-painting, Master Cuts who supplied meat, Moonee Valley Race Course that provided the venue, and Cadbury who offered goodies for show bags.

The Santa shop

Abercare’s Santa shop is designed to relieve the burden on families who can’t afford Christmas presents by providing gifts for parents and carers to ‘purchase’ for their children for Christmas.

Gifts such as toys and vouchers were donated by companies in the local area, and families with a link to Abercare were invited to visit the shop at designated times and choose gifts for their children during December. Parents who attend were given coupons, and toys were ‘priced’ by coupon values.

City of West Water generously provided a range of gifts for the Santa Shop, and some staff even volunteered their time to pack and distribute Christmas hampers, and help parents negotiate the piles of presents to pick the perfect gift for their child.

Thank you to all who assisted in spreading some Christmas cheer amongst needy and disadvantaged families.