Tag Archives: Lemn Sissay

The Christmas Dinner: Shopping the pain free way!

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The Christmas Dinner 2018

Every year I wait for a message from my friend, Liz Fossu to say ‘ The List is up!’. Those four little words are the signal to go shopping. And I hate shopping!

Shopping as my contribution to The Christmas Dinner is the one exception – instead of misery it brings me joy. Someone else has done all the hard work creating the list and putting it up on Amazon. All I have to do is click. I chose four gifts this time – one on behalf of each of my grandchildren. Gifts range from colouring books for £4.99 to holdalls at £19.99. There are scarves, gloves, earphones and a whole host of other gifts to choose from; and the accumulated effect of choosing these gifts spreads joy and goodwill for a whole lot longer than a cup of expensive coffee that costs about the same price.

I have to admit that this is my favourite part of Christmas and I don’t even have to move from my desk to enjoy it. Who’d have thought it?

The Christmas Dinner 2018 Leeds

A huge amount of work goes into making every Christmas Dinner a success. The project was founded by Lemn Sissay, MBE – a care leaver himself. Each year the project grows as more cities set up their own Christmas List and gather a team of volunteers to make Christmas Special for hundreds of young people leaving the care system. Until Liz began sending me her messages I had no idea. I took for granted my big family Christmases – don’t we all. How often I have longed for five minutes peace after all the wrapping that takes hours and is demolished in seconds. But spare a thought for those young people who leave the care system and would crave a boisterous family Christmas. Many of them live in B and Bs, bedsits, or sofa surf. In the same circumstances would you look forward to Christmas?

All the volunteers have busy lives, frenetic jobs, careers and families; they are teachers, lawyers, photographers, PAs – yet they give up their free time, limited as it is, to plan, organise and deliver a wonderful Christmas Day for young people aged 16-25.

It isn’t just Christmas Day that takes up their time but the hours and hours of planning that making each event a fabulous success. There are venues to be secured, food and drink supplies, decorations, transport, people prepared to cook, people to serve – and wash up – oh yes, and all that wrapping. Can you imagine! I live too far away to join in with the Leeds wrapping (sighs with relief) but I’m sure if I didn’t I would enjoy the camaraderie and infectious enthusiasm that is generated when people come together with good will and generous spirit. Because that’s what Christmas is all about after all, isn’t it?

Why not pop over and discover the Christmas List on Amazon. It’s my kind of stress free giving.

And if you want to see what a great time everyone had last year you can watch this great video below.

Unwrapped: My Kind of Christmas Dinner

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I really don’t like mentioning the C word – not until at least December anyway – but there’s always going to be an exception. And the Christmas Dinner will always be my exception.

Last year I stumbled upon this fabulous event for young people leaving care. I didn’t give them a thought before – did you?

TCD – The Christmas Dinner

I wrote about the Leeds Christmas Dinner because a friend’s post on Facebook caught my eye. Perhaps you remember it? Perhaps you were a Secret Santa yourself. If not you can read about it here.

It’s the easiest way of giving and stepping into the Christmas Spirit while all those brilliant volunteers do the hard work. And those who give of their time so freely are from all walks of life – teachers, PAs, lawyers, waitresses, actors, photographers and social workers to name but few. Juggling homes, families and stressful jobs, they give up huge amounts of time to make Christmas special for many young people who may otherwise remain forgotten and lonely.

The Christmas Dinner is an annual project founded by the poet Lemn Sissay MBE for communities to provide a Christmas Day for care leavers aged between 16 and 25. This is the THIRD year a Christmas Dinner has been held in Leeds, mobilising the community to put on a scrumptious and magical Christmas Day dinner, turning Christmas into a time to cherish.

Lemn Sissay MBE

Lemn Sissay is a former care leaver himself so knows how tough this time of year can be for young people. Now Chancellor of the University of Manchester he continually inspires others to step up and get involved. And you can get involved without leaving your armchair. Bliss!

Volunteers look after every element of the event, from present wrapping, collecting food donations, dressing the venue, to helping to cook and entertain on the big day itself.

 

If you are in the area – and there are nine Christmas Dinners planned for this December – then why not join in. And if that’s not your particular bag and you’re up for Secret Santa – the bit I love the best – then why not click the link to the Amazon page and select a gift. Couldn’t be easier – and no wrapping!

Gifts range in price from £3.99 for a lip balm to £65 for a smart watch, and a variety of gifts that will suit most people’s pocket in between. Any one of them would make someone very happy indeed.

If only all of Christmas could be so easy!

I am being glib, I know, but sitting here at the keyboard allows me to be. It doesn’t mean that I’m not counting my blessings and looking forward to all the family descending here for Christmas – Brussel sprouts and all. Family can be many things but mostly it’s about caring for each other. Who that other is is up to you.

Well, there’s still so much to do before the big day and I’m determined to ignore it as best I can until the last possible minute.

Until then, I’m hoping over to Amazon right now to make my selection.

Care to join me?

To be Secret Santa follow me The Christmas Dinner wishlist for Leeds

You can find more about the other Christmas Dinners at http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/the-christmas-dinner-2017

 

The Christmas Dinner that Spreads Joy

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secret santa

It’s only one day but what if you had nothing to look forward to over the Christmas period?

A lot of us might think of the elderly living alone, no-one to make their Christmas a special event but there are many people for whom Christmas can be a painful time. We may not give a passing thought to younger members of society yet many of them will be dreading Christmas too. And if it wasn’t for something that popped up on my Facebook feed I might still be guilty of that.

Facebook might be littered with photographs of what people had for dinner, indulgent cakes, cheesy cartoons and cute dogs – but now and then, among all the dross, something will catch your eye, as a friend’s Facebook post did mine. How would I like to be a Secret Santa? All I had to do was follow the link  to Amazon, choose a pressie and click. Simple yet stunning and I felt I had to share.

There are many young people leaving care, who may be living in B & Bs, bedsits, sleeping the streets or on friend’s sofas and many of them will be dreading Christmas. Lemn Sissay, award-winning official poet of London Olympics 2012 knows how that feels. He was a care leaver himself and he came up with this wonderful idea to make sure that those who are in a similar position have a fantastic Christmas.

Behold The Christmas Dinner  One big Christmas party when they can relax, have fun and be given gifts – this is where the Secret Santa comes in. A festive day for care leavers (those who are 18 – 25 who have been looked after by local authorities away from the home for at least thirteen weeks since the age of fourteen, as well as those with a background in care within the home).

The Christmas Dinner started in Manchester in 2013 but this year there will be similar events in Hackney, Leeds and Oxford.

I spoke with Jill Ambrazitis, who is organising The Christmas Dinner in Leeds to find out more about event and how to get involved.

How many people in the team to bring this sort of event to fruition?

The steering committee for the Leeds event comprised approximately 20 people.  We will also have additional volunteers assisting with set-up on Christmas Eve, more on Christmas Day to help with the actual event and then a further group on Boxing Day to assist with clear-up etc.

How many young people will receive gifts this year?

We anticipate that there will be 50 care leavers attending our event this year, all of whom will receive gifts.

Who devised the list, accepts delivery, wraps the presents etc?

Lemn suggested that we set up an Amazon wish list, (we believe Manchester and Hackney were already doing this).  I added the suggested gifts and required quantities to the Leeds Wish List on Amazon. All gifts purchased from the list will be delivered to me.  We have a group of volunteers participating in a marathon gift wrapping session on Saturday 17 December.

How can people get involved? 

At this stage, mostly by being Secret Santas and purchasing gifts via the Amazon Wish list using this link https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/registry/wishlist/1A1SAFC1KDL5B/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2

Ideally, we would like to have as many of the gifts as possible delivered by 16 December (prior to the wrapping activity), however, having said that this does not mean that we would not accept contributions/donations thereafter!  In addition, our venue does not have any sofas/soft furnishings, so if there is anyone who has bean bags/sofas etc. that they are not using and would be prepared to lend/donate these to us  that would be amazing.

So, click on the link and choose your present. It’s quick and easy way of being Secret Santa and it will make someone’s day to receive a sackful of presents.

If anyone else is thinking of doing something similar you can find out exactly how to plan your event for 2017 on Lemn Sissay’s blog.