Advent Calendar Initiative Highlights Work of Essex Charities

Mary-Ann Deasy, a resident of Little Totham, has developed an advent calendar designed to feature the efforts of 24 distinct charities assisting individuals in Essex. Ms. Deasy stated that from December 1 to 24, a brief video will be posted daily on social media platforms, aiming to illustrate how a particular charity has supported people and to generate “joy.” The concept for this initiative was conceived by Ms. Deasy in November. She remarked, “My research over the last few weeks has really humbled me.” She added, “There are amazing people doing amazing things in our county.” This marks the inaugural year Ms. Deasy has organized the calendar. She expressed, “The hope is that it will bring joy, for each day for 24 days, there is a short video clip which is highlighting all of the amazing work of a charity which is supporting people in our Essex community.” She further commented, “The video clips have been coming in and they are absolutely beautiful. Advent is such a wonderful time and this is Essex and we are a great community.” She concluded, “So I thought it would be quite fun to do something to bring the community together.” Ms. Deasy indicated that she had more than 3,000 charities from which to select, ultimately needing to reduce the number to 24 featured organizations. She elaborated, “We went ahead and really tried to pick charities right across our county.” She specified that the selection was “All focused on people, so it’s all about people in need, old/ young and various needs.” Despite having only one month to assemble the project, Ms. Deasy stated, “I’ve tried to be as inclusive and diverse as we can, but obviously with [the] timing, people will just embrace it for what it is.” For updates on Essex news, follow BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external sites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.