Older people in need this Christmas
UnitingCare is is targetting disadvantaged older people as well as families and young people, in its annual Christmas appeal.
UnitingCare NSW.ACT plans to share the joy of Christmas with isolated older people through its annual Christmas appeal.
With the support of Target, UnitingCare’s Operation Santa project delivers gifts to vulnerable Australians through the generosity of their local communities.
Although Operation Santa mainly assists disadvantaged children, families and young people, Uniting Care said there are many older people in need of support this Christmas.
The group hopes to collect a wide range of gifts for the elderly including movie tickets, wallets, towel sets, non-perishable food items like Christmas puddings and chocolates, and stationery.
The group’s executive director, Rev Harry Herbert, urged people to give a gift to the older members of their community through the program.
“No-one likes to think that they may be alone for Christmas but life can sometimes give us a different path to what we have expected,” he said.
“Giving a gift to an older person in your community lets them know that someone cares about their happiness during what can already be a very difficult time of year.”
According to UnitingCare, the number of older people experiencing social isolation is likely to rise in the coming decades as divorce rates increase and birth rates decrease.
The gifts will be collected at Target and Target Country stores throughout NSW and the ACT. UnitingCare representatives will distribute them to disadvantaged local people in time for Christmas.
