Wairarapa Midweek Wed 20th Dec

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WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2017

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Whanau given ‘full Christmas’ EMILY NORMAN Eleven Wairarapa families have been gifted a full Christmas day they’ll never forget, thanks to the generosity of the community. Facilitated by Whaiora Medical Centre, the Christmas initiative started about five years ago with “a couple of do-gooding people who wanted to help someone out”. Over the years, word has spread – and now the 11 selected families with young children, who will remain anonymous, have been given a chance to celebrate a “full Christmas”, complete with presents, gift baskets, and the makings of a

Christmas meal. Whaiora office manager Libby Trafford said the initiative was all about “trying to spread the love, knowing that people are vulnerable and that not everyone has enough money to spend on their children”. “The selected families have come mainly from our Tamariki services – so, mums with little babies and people who are just struggling,” Libby said. “If they did have a Christmas, it probably would have created a financial struggle for them, and so this way, at least they are able to do something nice this Christmas without the financial pressure.” Libby said she was glad people had

turned their focus on giving back to their local communities this festive season. “A lot of people do things like collect gifts in shoeboxes and send them out of the country to help people overseas. “This year, we’ve had a lot of people decide that maybe we should be looking in our own backyard before we go further afield.” Tamariki Services team leader Louis Witbooi said it had been special to “bring a little bit of light into people’s lives”. “As we distributed the gifts, people were really excited and appreciative

of the fact that someone had thought of them,” he said. “Their burdens were lighter going into the Christmas season, and we just want to thank people for working with us. “You know, it just makes things a little bit easier for families as we go into this busy season.”

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Whaiora’s inaugural Christmas in the Car Park. PHOTO/EMILY NORMAN

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