It’s not all about decorations and twinkly lights! We speak to the people spreading Christmas cheer in the community…
WORDS: MARIE PENMAN
As we move towards Christmas, running ourselves ragged with shopping, decorating and cooking, it’s heartwarming to know that for many people, the festive season is still about peace and goodwill to all.
And one place this is very evident is in the lottery-funded charity run by The Eden Project in Cornwall, which includes the various Eden Project Communities.
These are spread across the UK and are aimed at encouraging people to try to make a positive difference in the area where they live.
Part charity, part social enterprise, The Eden Project Communities are based on the premise that people are more than capable of changing things for the better, simply by working together.
We spoke with some of the volunteers going out of their way to make sure the true meaning of Christmas lives on…
Emma McDevitt and Eloner Crawford are community organisers at A Heart for Duns, a charity based in the Scottish Borders that uses the local town hall to support people.
Eloner helped to set up the charity after she and a group of others became aware of the need for a central hub in their rural community, which is home to a mainly older population.
Over the past decade, the hall has become a vibrant and vital space, offering everything from a gardening group to a book swap scheme and monthly film screenings, all supported by a large team of volunteers. A Heart for Duns also offers a community lunch, a much-loved monthly event launched around five years ago to bring people together to share food and conversation, and now around 40 people enjoy soup, sandwiches and pudding together each month.
These lunches are more important than ever during the winter months, when the older population in particular might be struggling with feelings of loneliness and isolation.
That’s why last December, the community pulled out all the stops for a Big Lunch at Christmas. Eloner said, “I just love the idea of people coming together, especially when they’re eating. Everyone can come and join in and the chatter that goes on is wonderful.”
Across the other side of the country, Angela Perrett, 49, works at The Sprint in Bristol – a community service providing door-to-door transport for elderly and disabled people. More than just a transport service, The Sprint provi
