Community festive party takes cheer to the streets
Not every family is treated to the traditional trimmings of Christmas Day, but theywill hopefully know what unity feels like.
This was part of the purpose for Palmerston North’s Salvation Army’s annual festive party, which staved off the rain with carnival food, games, toys, music and cartoon characters.
Minnie Mouse and Peppa Pig led the festivities at its Church St headquarters yesterday.
Lisa Mohi, a home educator who was on herway to Memorial Park with the children she cares for, encountered the Christmas party by chance.
It offered an opportunity to relax and share the joy of the holiday season. ‘‘It’s so hard to provide now, to provide for our children, and we’re all struggling, so to have somewhere to come and for them to have so many goodies, it’s amazing.
‘‘You can see that it means a lot to them [children]. You can feel the Christmas spirit here. I’m actually quite in awe of what they’ve provided for the children and families.’’
Rosa Fuafiva and her children were delighted by the occasion and it was a relief that money wasn’t a factor. ‘‘It’s too expensive for us to buy presents for the kids, but here we get it for free. The kids love the toys and the bouncy castles.’’
Fuafiva would be spending December 25 in hospital with her eldest son, who was having a hip operation, so the party was her Christmas celebration with her two young children.
Salvation Army captain Stu Lee said the partywas an opportunity to bless the community, especially after a challenging year.
‘‘The event we used to have, which was a Christmas community meal, you could only sit 200. Well, we can say that we’ve easily had 300 through already, but if we can connect with 400, 500, 600 people, it’s just about bringing that cheer of community to people.’’
Lee said it was great to see so many kids and families having fun.
‘‘It can be challenging with parents having to look after their kids with so much going on towards Christmas, so this is an opportunity to just come and share and relax.
‘‘Some families we’ve engaged with have chosen to put money aside for their holiday, rather than putting stuff under the Christmas tree, so we’ve been able to give them some toys and some gifts.’’