Charitable Project Distributes Thousands of Gifts in Telford and Wrekin

A local charitable initiative will enable over 2,000 vulnerable individuals in Telford and Wrekin to unwrap presents with their families on Christmas Day, individuals who might otherwise have received nothing. The Christmas Smile Project, established in 2013, initially provided gifts to 125 children alongside food bank parcels. Due to an abundance of donations, some presents required storage until the subsequent year, leading the project to expand significantly. Operated entirely by volunteers, Christmas Smile currently ensures thousands of residents in the borough receive new, wrapped gifts to open on 25 December. The project’s activities are concentrated annually between November and December. Various organizations throughout Telford and Wrekin, such as the council, charities, and care homes, submit referrals for individuals and families to the Christmas Smile team. After compiling this list, the subsequent task involves securing a sufficient quantity of presents. Each November, the public and businesses are invited to begin contributing Christmas gifts to the initiative. Referrals manager Jo Barrow stated, “We ask for anything that you would like to give that’s new.” She further specified, “We like craft sets for kids, smelly sets for mums and dads, we like loads of toys, footballs.” The volunteers’ objective is to provide families, particularly children, with a memorable experience on Christmas Day. “We give three to five gifts per child, and we also give something for mum and dad to open, so it’s a family occasion,” she explained. “We also give a selection box for each child, and a game or a jigsaw that they can open on Christmas Day that they can play together as a family.” Catering to thousands of individuals necessitates a collective effort from all involved. During December, volunteers commence the process of selecting, sorting, and wrapping the contributed presents for each recipient. For the past two years, Telford’s Gurdwara has served as the project’s base. Open days are organized at this location, allowing members of the public to assist the primary volunteer team in preparing all items for distribution. Ms Barrow commented, “The only way we make this magic happen is having people coming in and helping.” She added, “I’ve been involved year-on-year for about eight years now, I just think this is such a critical service for the community.” She expressed, “It just makes me feel so humbled that I can help at least one family in this community and that’s what it’s all about isn’t it?” concluding with, “Giving back to others and making everyone have the best Christmas.” Volunteer Angela Davies described the project as evoking numerous emotions. She stated, “I’ve semi-retired from work, but in every waking moment of my non-working life, it’s here, and my children think I live here.” She characterized it as “all-consuming… it’s hard to walk away at the end.” Davies noted that the pressures on families during the Christmas period were “immense.” She remarked, “It’s sad that we can’t help everybody.” However, she also conveyed, “It’s happy, it’s joyous, because we are helping so many families who, if we hadn’t been involved, perhaps wouldn’t have anything on Christmas morning to open, or very little.” With all the gifts now placed under hundreds of Christmas trees awaiting opening, Christmas Smile will not commence accepting donations for Christmas 2025 until the following November. Nevertheless, the volunteers consistently retain the knowledge that their efforts create a meaningful impact throughout the year. Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.