For most, Christmas is a time of happiness and joy but for others, this may not be the case. Cornwall is known for its beautiful landscapes and stunning coastline, but it is also an area of deprivation, where many families struggle to make ends meet. Nobody wants to think of a child going without for Christmas, which is why several charities and businesses run toy appeals each year to provide gifts for children in Cornwall, who may otherwise not receive anything on Christmas morning.
This year, we were delighted to be able to allocate £3000 to purchase toys and gifts for various appeals across the county. As with previous years, we worked closely with the local Salvation Army to allocate Christmas gifts to families identified by local authorities.
Early in December, several of our team donned Christmas hats, and with wish lists in hand, headed to the shops to purchase a selection of gifts for children of all ages, from newborns right through to teens. Almost £2000 worth of toys and gifts were purchased from local shops, included Blewetts of Hayle and Lily Rose, who both kindly donated additional items, free of charge. A further £400 was donated last minute to help with the Salvation Army’s Toy Appeal in St Austell. We were thrilled to be able to support the cause in person, with volunteers assisting the Salvation Army teams in Penzance and St Ives across four days.
Furthermore, we purchased £500 worth of toys for DISC Newquay’s Toy Appeal (from their Amazon wish list), which was organised and facilitated by J. Savage Financial, who kindly collected all the toys.
Cross Estates, an estate agency based in St Ives participate in the Cash for Kids’ Mission Christmas appeal every year, providing toys for children locally. We were delighted to drop off £250 worth of gifts to Cross Estates in support of their appeal.
Gemma Taylor, Chair of the Charity Council for Aspects Holidays, commented “we’re thrilled to be able to continue our support of local Christmas appeals by donating toys and packing hampers again this year. Our team is extremely grateful for the opportunity to be able to help those in our local communities and spread a little Christmas cheer.”
If you’d like to find out more about what we do to support the local community, you can read more on our blog, or follow us on Facebook and Instagram.