Caritas Westminster Advent Calendar
Caritas Westminster has produced its Fifth Advent Giving Calendar!
Every year since 2019 schools, parishes, individuals, families and businesses have made use of the Advent Giving Calendar to support their local food project and to as part of their preparations for Christmas.
While the need has increased in this time, so has people’s generosity. One school which runs a food bank told Caritas Westminster last year that donations inspired by the Calendar helped them to keep stocked up until Easter.
The calendar has been used by people of all ages, encouraging them to donate one item for each day in Advent to their local food bank or other project which provides food. It can also inspire adults and children to think more about the needs of people around them at Christmas time.
For example, a year 2 child at St Vincent’s Catholic Primary School, said at the beginning of Advent last year: “I have started to buy these food items. My mum said that she will take me to drop these at the food bank. I am excited to do this. I cannot wait to help people when I grow up. I want to make a difference to make this world a better place for everyone.”
Parishes and schools across the diocese of Westminster will soon be incorporating the Calendar into their preparations for advent. Many schools will make displays and parishes will hand out calendars and provide a space in their church for people bring the items each week.
This year Caritas Westminster hopes the Calendar will be used in even more places and by even more people. They are offering a version of the Calendar to sister organisations in the Caritas network, both in dioceses in England and Wales and also the rest of Europe.
As the cost of living crisis continues to affect families in our diocese and across the country the need to support food projects is greater than ever. Some parish run food banks spend up to £1,000 a week on supplies to serve those who need them.
The volunteers which run the Social Apostolate, serving homeless people in Stamford Hill, said last year: “Thanks to the widely advertised Advent Calendar campaign, we collected lots of products. All parishioners joined the action!”
The Calendar can be found at www.caritaswestminster.org.uk/food-security-918.php#AGC or, for a template version to adapt for your own diocese please contact the Caritas Westminster Food Programme [email protected]
