A SINGLE MUM’S STORY

PESACH is a particularly difficult time for Sarah, a mother of four from northwest London.

Because of her circumstances, she is not in a position to hold down a full-time job. “I don’t get any support apart from the charities that have helped me — and my benefits,” she says.

Although she is aided by the Gift food charity throughout the year – receiving a voucher for a kosher chicken every week, for example — Gift has supplied further assistance to help her get through Pesach.

“Keeping kosher generally I find very difficult,” she explains.

“But Pesach is even more expensive. The whole kitchen needs to be changed over — it’s just crippling, really. You can’t even get your head around it.

“It’s so hard because there’s always so much going on with the kids, the bills...

“Gift have been amazing. They do as much as they can to help people like me and my family.

“They’ve given me some money to help change over [for Pesach], which I wouldn’t otherwise be able to do.” Gift’s support was funded from money from a Purim collection.

Sarah maintains that keeping kosher is important to her. “You know what? I believe in the tradition.

If I don’t hold on to that and what I’ve been brought up with and what my children see at school… It’s not just the rules, it’s a way of life.”

Friday night with her children is special. “When you don’t have much else, at least you can have that.”