The Emerald Scout Group is aiming to make the festive season a little brighter for local families facing hardship, launching an ambitious Christmas hamper donation drive in partnership with the Fernlea Community House food bank.
The initiative, which is part of the Scouts’ Creating a Better World special interest area, is being driven by the Cub section. According to Scout Group registrar Lee-Arna Fitch, the project provides a valuable learning experience for the children.
“Having heard from Kerry at the Community House, it was really grounding for the kids to understand what some families are going through this time of year and the work that’s being done locally to address it,” she said.
“It helps them conceptualise what a family might need on the dinner table over Christmas and what might make someone’s Christmas a little bit more special.”
Fernlea Community House manager Kerry McGregor said this partnership with the Scout Group was “the perfect example of collaboration within the town”, the House would like to expand and see more of, to ensure it becomes a “shared community space” that “everyone has some ownership of”.
The Community House has identified at least 20 local families who regularly rely on the community food pantry and who would greatly appreciate a little something special over the festive season.
The Scouts have already enthusiastically started collecting donations from their own families, and are now reaching out to the wider community and local businesses, seeking non-perishable food, personal care items, and toys for the hampers.
They are particularly looking for “special” Christmas items like puddings, shortbreads, jams, and chutneys, as well as easy-to-prep meal packages for families with limited cooking access.
“We are appealing to local businesses and any other interested community groups to support us with further donations or a financial contribution so that we can ensure the hampers are perfect for families at Christmas,” Lee-Arna said.
“We’ve already received some promising support from Emerald Newsagency and the Emerald Rotary group and look forward to collaborating with as many local businesses as we can.”
The Emerald Scout Group will also use their biggest annual fundraiser, the Christmas Tree Sales, as a collection point for the hamper drive.
Starting next weekend, from Saturday 29 November, through to Sunday 14 December, fresh Christmas trees will be sold every Saturday and Sunday from 9am to 1pm at the Emerald Scout Hall.
When you buy your tree, you can also:
Bring along non-perishable food or personal care product donations for the hampers.
Make a monetary contribution, which will be used to buy essential hamper ingredients.
The tree sales are crucial, with the funds going towards subsidising camp fees for Scouts and maintaining essential gear like tents and equipment throughout the year. The group offers a selection process, allowing customers to choose the size and type of tree that suits their needs, with home delivery available.
Lee-Arna also stressed the ongoing need for support at the Community House food bank, which is currently under significant pressure from regular users.
“They’re helping people every week,” she said.
“Anything people can do to help those families would be amazing this time of year, especially when many services take Christmas leave.”
