This year, 232 children from 91 families will share in more than 800 gifts that volunteers have been busy sorting, allocating and wrapping.
The appeal has grown into a collaboration between Yarrawonga Health, MHA Care, Yarrawonga Mulwala CLC and Ignite Life Church.
Sharon Hargreaves from Ignite Life Church coordinates the collection of gifts, which are sorted into appropriate ages, allocated anonymously to a registered family, and then wrapped by one of her team of volunteers.
“No-one here knows who they are wrapping for, it’s all anonymous,” Sharon said.
“I’m the only one who gets the list, and then when I’m done it’s all shredded.”
Ignite Life Church got involved more than 10 years ago when Sharon said they could see the organisers at Yarrawonga Health were struggling.
“We asked how we could help; they were already inundated, even with a smaller number of families, so we started a partnership with them,” she said.
“We used to take a big plastic garbage bag, knock on doors and say, ‘here you go’.
“But it’s grown so much; there’s so many families now who are doing it hard.”
The Pay It Forward Christmas Appeal sees families who need assistance register with Yarrawonga Health or by QR code on flyers around town.
Occasionally the schools will register a family they know is struggling.
Businesses around Yarrawonga and Mulwala act as collection points for residents who buy a gift for a child who may otherwise go without.
Food hampers are organised by Moira Food Share (MHA Care).
Ignite Life’s Pastor Keith Walters said there was an immense amount of amazing work being done by people in the Yarrawonga Mulwala area.
“This is a great community, and we need to celebrate that more,” he said.
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