As you are probably aware the number of hampers that we have provided over the years has increased significantly, with the total being 193 in 2023. 50 of these were put together by church members and their friends, with the others being done by affiliated friends, other churches in Carlisle and a large number put together by the Hebron Hamper team. Whilst it has been a privilege and joy to do this over the years the numbers have now become more than the hamper team can manage, so in light of this, in 2024 we are going to be trialling doing things slightly differently.
In recent months we were made aware of a group that was forming to discuss food provision at Christmas across the city. The group is made up of council and other third-sector organisation representatives. They have a big vision to provide 400 hampers to people who need one this Christmas and are planning to be a centralised point for families and individuals to be referred to.
Representatives from the Hebron Hamper Team met with Emma Mackie (Food Cumberland Development Officer, Cumberland Council) and Stephanie Humes (Carlisle Foodbank Manager), who are heading up the group a couple of weeks ago, to establish their plans and see if we could work alongside them. We shared that it’s not just about the food for us, but at the heart of what we do in putting the hampers together is God’s love and our desire to share that love with others in a really practical way. They took this on board and are keen for us to work with them and continue to share God’s love through the messages in the cards that we normally put inside the hampers.
We think this is a great opportunity to partner with the council and other third-party organisations from around the city, to share God’s love with them and the families who receive the hampers. An opportunity for the church to be part of and impact city-wide projects
The central team are planning to do food hampers only, as they feel the provision for children to receive gifts is already covered through The Salvation Army and Cash for Kids. I expect a communal gift for a family, such as a board/card game or a big box of chocolates, could be a nice bonus in the hampers if this is something you would like to do.
So, what does it look like for Hebron this year?
We have committed to providing 50 of the 400 food hampers, which will include items similar to those we have put in the hampers in previous years, along with the usual Christmas card with greetings from Hebron Church and an invite to our services and potentially other things happening, Hector, Mealbank etc.
So how can you get involved?
1. Commit to putting together one of the 50 food hampers, there are a few ways you can do this:
- Put together a hamper individually or maybe gather a group of friends, neighbours, work colleagues, Thrive group etc, all bring a few items from the shopping list that will be provided, or put cash in a pot and someone in the group gets the food.
- If you would like to do a hamper but don’t have the funds to buy the food, we can provide that from the current hamper funds, which is enough to cover around 10 hampers.
- Please email admin@hebronec.co.uk to let us know you would like to do 1 of the hampers, we will ensure you are sent the number of people in the family and the shopping list ahead of time.
2. Give financially towards the hampers that are being put together from Hebron with surplus funds going towards the other 350 hampers.
3. Get involved in one of the planned packing days that will be held at a location in the city to join together with others to put the remaining 350 hampers together. Dates and location will be published as soon as we have that information.
4. If it’s toys you like to buy, please donate these to the Salvation Army or Cash for Kids. Drop-off points are usually located in supermarkets and toy shops for this.
In early 2025 we will review how things have gone and make some informed decisions about how to do hampers again in 2025.
Once again, thank you for your love and support for those in need in our city, we feel this is a great opportunity for the church to work alongside the council and other organisations to bless the city at this special time of year. Please pray for all those involved that they too would see God’s light shining through us as we work together.
The Hamper Team