Our club has donated $1,000 towards Christmas hampers and vouchers to bring some festive cheer to local families in need. An amount of $500 will go to both St Mark’s Church in Emerald and St Luke’s Church in Cockatoo, to support a Christmas hamper initiative they’ve been running for the last 12 years.
Club President Shalini Penny said, “In the past year or so, our club has distributed more than $15,000 in vouchers to locals impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The $1,000 donation to the local churches extends our commitment to supporting the local community during these challenging times so that those less fortunate can have the Christmas they deserve”.
The churches work in partnership with local schools which distribute the hampers to local families. This year, 80 hampers containing a variety of festive goodies, including a ham, cake, pudding, custard, mince pies, nuts, pretzels and biscuits, and $1,100 in Christmas vouchers will be given out.
The food items, as well as some financial assistance, were generously donated by the local IGA supermarkets and other businesses, local service clubs such as Rotary and Lions, the Cockatoo Market and local citizens.
Anyone in need of food can obtain some essentials for free from The Food Store, which operates out of St Luke’s Church in Cockatoo every Monday from 10am to 2pm.
Photo: (l-r) Nicole Lane of St Mark’s Church, Emerald; Rotary Club of Emerald and District President Shalini Penny; and Sue Barbieri of St Luke’s Church of Cockatoo.
