CareSouth’s Giving Tree grants hundreds of holiday wishes
Community spirit shone brightly this holiday season through an outpour of generosity in support of CareSouth’s Giving Tree.
For the fifth consecutive year, CareSouth’s Giving Tree helped to ensure everyone experienced the magic of unwrapping a hand-picked gift at Christmas. This year, it aimed to gift every child, teen and person with disability that CareSouth supports a present from their wishlist.
Over 600 wishes come true this holiday season thanks to community members and local organisations who raised over $30,000 in monetary and physical donations.
Gifts were distributed across CareSouth’s regional footprint throughout the month of December. CareSouth staff, with the closest relationship to each individual, hand-selected gifts from the physical donations or utilised funds raised to purchase a gift from that person’s wishlist.
Daniel, CareSouth Program Manager, has been a part of the thoughtful gifting process for several years. “A lot of young people in care really struggle with Christmas, as often it’s a time where they were forgotten in the past. Some young people simply never received anything, or for some, it’s about missing family and friends. CareSouth’s Giving Tree shows our kids that people do care about them and are willing to go above and beyond to bring a smile to their face,” says Daniel.
All Saints Anglican Church, Berry Community Pre–School, Build Your Dreams (BYD) Nowra, The Country Club St Georges Basin, The Bay and Basin Community Support Group, Bendigo Bank, Cyclo Group, Notts Smash Repair, Paying It Forward, Ray White Goulburn, Shell’s Mobile Café, Sikorsky, Vincentia High School contributed significantly to CareSouth’s Giving Tree. Thanks to their compassion and generosity a huge number of children, teens, young adults and people with disability experienced the magic of Christmas this year.
“For many of the people we support, the gift they received was more than just a present. It’s a way of helping them feel seen, cared for, and part of a bigger family. The impact lasts well beyond the holiday season. We are truly so grateful for all of those who supported the campaign this year,” says Denise Hanley, Acting Chief Executive Officer of CareSouth.
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