lifestyle
Good causes to support this Christmas
‘Tis the season of giving, and unfortunately, the need to do so is greater than ever this year. While these charitable organisations will appreciate your help all year round, Hannah Collins encourages you to consider them this Christmas if you’re looking to donate time and money to a local cause rather than buy gifts and cards.
Patch
Pembrokeshire Action To Combat Hardship is a grassroots organisation providing relief aid in the southwest of Wales, including food, clothing, toiletries, cleaning products, sanitary products and pet food. Their annu- al toy appeal is returning this year, for which you can drop off unwanted items to be recycled as Christmas presents at dropoff points all over Pembrokeshire. They also have a JustGiving page that’s open for mone- tary donations all year round, FYI. Contact
tracy@patchcharity.org.uk or
dave.patchcharity@
outlook.com for more info, go to PatchCharityPembs via Facebook, and donate at:
justgiving.com/P-A-T-C-H
Make A Smile Beginning as a Cardiff University students’ society in 2017, Make A
Smile is now a pretty large operation in Wales, founded to bring young hospital patients a little joy by sending people in fancy dress into wards. Now, it’s not just Spider-Men and Disney Princesses paying visits to sick children – Make A Smile offers a range of activities, from singing to read-a-longs and online visits, and has extended its target demographic to the elderly. Get involved by volunteering or taking part in one of their many fundraising events, from bake sales and fun runs to karaoke. Contact
admin@makeasmile.org.uk for more info, or go to:
makeasmile.org.uk
Toybox Project We’ve mentioned this Caerphilly-based CIC before but you can never
plug a good thing too much, eh? I’ll let their founder, GP James Morgan, give you to deets: “We take in unwanted toys and gift good quality toys to families and organisations in need within Caerphilly and surrounding areas. We do this all year round but things really ramp up at Christmas! We have gifted toys to thousands of children and over 40 schools and community groups. I am very lucky to have amazing volunteers to help process donations and requests and an even better community which continues to donate amazing toys to us.” Contact
james@toyboxproject.co.uk for more info, or go to:
toyboxproject.co.uk
54
Barry Santa Sleigh Having begun in 1973, Barry’s annual Santa Sleigh is run by Round Ta-
ble, which focuses on engaging men aged 18-45 in social activities. This festive tour of the town has gone from a bit of fun to a major fundraising project for the group, with members of the public able to donate money (physically or digitally) to a Santa at designated residential and commer- cial stopoffs. You can track the route via Google Maps and Facebook via the links on their website. Info:
barryroundtable.co.uk/santa-sleigh
My Discombobulated Brain Founded by entrepreneur Laura Jane Dernie, whose life was affected by
the suicide of a close friend at a young age, My Discombobulated Brain is dedicated to ending the stigma around mental health conversations. They’ve recently launched an app named MDB Help, directing people suffering sudden mental health crises to safe spaces and immediate sup- port at their nearest location. Help them out by spreading the word, be- coming a partner, or fundraising/donating. Info:
mdbhelp.co.uk
Living Pictures Carmarthenshire theatre company Living Pictures was set up at the turn
of the millennium by Elen and Rob Bowman to foster creative, inclu- sive and environmentally-embedded spaces for all. Its Coed Dylan pro- ject – which takes its name from the couple’s son and namesake, Dylan Thomas’ poem Fernhill – is 4.5 acres of green space purchased in 2014, renovated to become a “biodiverse” place for people to enjoy off-the- beaten track. Currently, they’re busy turning shipping containers into wet weather havens and building a Garden Gym – a “therapeutic horti- culture project” – with funding from Project Sylfaen, and encouraging people to get involved. Contact Robbie at
coeddylan@gmail.com for more info, or go to:
livingpictures.co.uk
Michael Swan
Festive Special
b
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80
