We are thrilled to announce we’ve reached our target to fill 250 Christmas hampers for local families and households in need thanks to the generosity of local companies. 

Emmaus Salford runs Lucie’s Pantry, a social supermarket providing food and home essentials to members of the Salford community struggling to make ends meet through debt, illness or low income. The team that runs Lucie’s Pantry are in the process of preparing 250 Christmas hampers, one for each of their pantry members and other households in need.   

A couple of weeks ago, we appealed for financial donations so we could purchase a uniformed selection of items for the hampers and we are so pleased to have reached our target thanks to some generous businesses. 

Vicky Cabo, Safety, Health, Environment and Quality Manager at Bridgestone Construction said: “Bridgestone are delighted to partner with Emmaus Salford as our local charity for 2024 and are grateful to have the means to make this donation and support these much-needed Christmas food hampers. Food poverty is a real issue in the communities we work and supporting the charity allows us to be part of the collective effort to combat it as well as spreading some Christmas cheer. We hope to continue our support and help make a difference in the coming months.” 

 Last year we put together 250 hampers that went out to struggling families in Salford. Helen, a customer of Lucie’s Pantry received a hamper last year and said: 

“The hamper means a hell of a lot to me, it really helps me in the bad weather, not having to go out all the time I just make one trip and it keeps me going until after Christmas.” 

Jackie Smith, Chief Executive of Emmaus Salford said: 

“Every year we aim to provide every food pantry customer with a Christmas Hamper with a few festive treats. The money that we have received just this week arriving with us not only the amount which is outstanding and £1,000 more than previous year, which given the challenges of this year is just amazing but also it provides us with a couple of additional weeks to purchase the right items, shop around and get the most that we can for our customers in the hope of bringing some festive joy.” 

If you’d like to spread the true spirit of the season, please consider donating to our Reverse Advent Calendar. Your donation can brighten the holiday season for our companions who’ve experienced homelessness, providing them with the joy of unwrapping a gift on Christmas day. Find out more here: https://emmaus.org.uk/salford/reverse-advent-calendar-2023/