With only a few days until Christmas, the Mount Gambier/ Berrin community has rallied together to raise more than $30,000 for the Mayor’s Christmas Appeal
City of Mount Gambier Mayor Lynette Martin was pleased by the response of local people who had donated to help those who may be struggling this festive season.
“I am always humbled by the generosity of our supportive community,” she said.
“This year is particularly difficult for many people with the escalating cost of living.
“It really is wonderful to know that people continue to consider others during this special time of year.”
All funds raised as part of the appeal are distributed to local support agencies including Uniting Care, ac.care, St Vincent de Paul and The Salvation Army to provide food hampers, vouchers and gifts through the Christmas Cheer program.
Ms Martin thanked the people who had donated, and those who had given up their time to help make up hampers in time for Christmas.
St Vincent de Paul representative John D’Souza said said his team had been hard at work giving back to the community.
“Our team of volunteers has assembled 33 toy boxes, each valued at up to $120, benefiting around 97 children collectively,” he said.
“In addition to these generous contributions, we’ve also prepared 112 food hampers for distribution later this week.”
Mount Gambier Men’s Shed volunteer Peter Heness said members had spent hundreds of hours this year crafting 130 handmade wooden toys to donate to the appeal
“Over the past seven years the volunteers at the Men’s Shed have made 1000 toys for children in our community,” he said.
“We love doing this to make sure that our local kids receive gifts at Christmas.”
The Mount Gambier Library coordinated a Christmas Book Drive as part of the Mayor’s Christmas Appeal, with 246 books generously donated by the community this year and distributed by all agencies involved.
It is not too late to donate to the appeal. All funds raised are distributed within the local area.
Donations can be made through the following channels:
Call Council on (08) 8721 2555 with your credit card details on hand. Council staff will email you a tax invoice.
In person at the City of Mount Gambier customer service counter – Civic Centre, 10 Watson Terrace.
Send a cheque made out to ‘City of Mount Gambier’ PO Box 56 Mount Gambier SA 5290 with advice that the cheque is a donation to the Mayor’s Christmas Appeal.
Tins and a ‘tap and go’ EFTPOS system are also available at local businesses.
