Published:
6:00 AM April 21, 2021
Appealing for support for Project Food are, from the left: Annabel Kane, Laurie Spencer of Porkies and Sharon Thorne of TRIP
- Credit: Tim Dixon
A major community project to feed struggling households in Honiton is appealing for help.
The initiative, dubbed Project Food, has grown from work that was done to provide food for people whose lives had been hit hard by the corona virus pandemic.
It is born out of an idea by Sharon Thorne, the deputy manager of the Honiton-based TRIP community transport organisation, which works to reduce rural isolation and loneliness in East Devon.
Program has a strong contribution season; Christmas gifts were delivered last week
It may have looked a little different in 2020, but Operation Rudolph did not let COVID keep it from spreading Christmas joy.
Volunteers, businesses and community members delivered Christmas gifts to 386 children in 137 Jefferson County families. Watching the relief on a mother s face as she met me outside to put the gifts in her garage for Christmas brought me to tears, said Kim Schmith, Kiwanis board member and Operation Rudolph coordinator.
The Madras Kiwanis Club oversees the community program that serves the lowest-income youth and families of Jefferson County communities during the Christmas season by providing gifts. Operation Rudolph gathered family names a week longer than usual to be able to help more local families.
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OPERATION Rudolph will go ahead this year, spreading Christmas cheer across the Emerald community on the eve of Christmas.
However the annual tradition, organised by Emeraldâs emergency services, will run slightly differently due to coronavirus.
Rather than taking lolly donations for the emergency service teams to throw to onlookers, the committee is seeking monetary donations, following advice from Queensland Health. Operation Rudolph route for Emerald, 2020.
This will allow the committee to purchase lollies for the event while abiding by health advice.
Susan Juett of the SES said she was thrilled the event could continue this year and thanked the community for its support so far.
Madras family loses everything in home fire
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Joel Henderson sat up in bed.
Disoriented, he wondered why his 14-year-old daughter was making hot cocoa in the microwave at 4 in the morning,
Beep. Beep. Beep. It smelled like burning plastic, Raven Stockton remembers. As soon as she said that, the fire alarm just started ripping and didn t shut off, Henderson said.
He jumped up and ran to the hallway, where he could see that there was only a foot-and-a-half of clear air left. The whole rest of the house was full of smoke, so I got down, and I could see the front door, and there was no fire between me and the front door, so I got the kids out, got the wife out, Henderson recalls.
Operation Rudolph gets ready to fly
Kiwanis will start delivering Christmas presents to local families during the week
Gift cards, stuffed animals, shampoo and art kits came pouring into Operation Rudolph headquarters this past week as the last names were checked off Santa s list. By the middle of this week, all the gifts will be wrapped, sorted and organized for delivery. Kiwanis will pick up the bags and start deliveries, said Kim Schmith, Kiwanis board member and Operation Rudolph coordinator. The goal is to have gifts delivered by this weekend, so the families know Christmas has been taken care of.