Love in Action Wallan is set to benefit from a $5000 grant this Christmas, delivered as part of the latest round of Freemasons Foundation Victoria, FFV, Community Grants.
The grants will go toward a range of projects to support disadvantaged individuals, addressing issues such as food insecurity and job readiness, providing essential equipment to families, and providing mental and physical health education programs for young people.
In the case of Love in Action, the grant will be put toward ‘Don’t Spend Christmas Alone’, a free event for individuals and families who feel alone on Christmas Day.
Love in Action secretary Paul Dwyer said the grant would allow the event to feature a wide range of food and entertainment without eating into the funds collected through donations.
“We were going to go ahead with the event with or without financial assistance, it just would’ve meant that we would have to miss out on certain aspects that would make it special,” he said.
“When we’re presented with grants we jump at it. It just means we can hold these sorts of events without cutting into donations, and it’ll be enough to provide everything that we want to.”
Now in its second year, the Don’t Spend Christmas Alone event will be a free event and feature an animal farm, food, coffee, and ice cream vans, fairy floss, games, show bags and a visit from Santa.
Mr Dwyer said the event began in response to conversations around the community with people who were receiving support from Love in Action.
“It started last year because we were hearing that a common theme from the community was that a lot of people struggled around this time of year, they often felt alone or isolated,” he said.
“We wanted them to have somewhere to go, to have a sense of belonging and get a chance to interact with people and connect with the community in a way they might not usually get the opportunity to do.”
The FFV Community Grants are usually announced after Christmas for 2023, however Love in Action Wallan received special consideration for their Christmas event and have received the grant in time to prepare.
Don’t Spend Christmas Alone will be from 4pm to 7pm on December 25. To register, people can visit www.trybooking.com/events/landing/953590.
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