Derrylin woman Niamh Curry who will be spending Christmas Day bringing festive dinners to local people who live on their own. Niamh, who works at Swifts in Lisnaskea is, cooking and delivering the Christmas dinners as a gesture of goodwill for people around the county who otherwise might have little to look forward to at Christmas. RMG64
THE people of Irvinestown have been showing their Christmas spirit to help keep those on their own this festive season from feeling lonely.
The ARC Healthy Living Centre in the town will be open from 12-2pm this Christmas Day and are putting on a full dinner spread with all the trimmings. Anyone facing the day on their own this year is welcome to go along and join in the festivities.
Aidan Ormsby, a senior manager at ARC, said they had been overwhelmed with support from the local community for the event.
“It has been very well received in the community,” he said. “We’ve had people donating turkeys, hams, desserts and so on. A number of local people and businesses have been extremely generous.
“We’ve also been inundated with volunteers, we have around 15-20 volunteering their time to come in on Christmas Day, which is fantastic. We’ve been swamped with generosity of the local community. It’s all about the community providing support for the community.
“This is the first year we’ve done it, but we’re expecting it will go well with the response so far.
“It really looks like it might catch on.”
Mr Ormsby said anyone who is alone this Christmas is welcome to come along to ARC on Christmas Day to enjoy the homely, warm, bright event.
“We are asking people to let us know in advance so we have an idea. So far we have around 12-15 people confirmed but I would anticipate a few more. The people are from a broad section of society of all ages and environments. Here at ARC we promote a very inclusive environment, and we will be open for anyone at all who may be on their own this Christmas.
“We’re open from 12-2pm, so anyone who is on their own can come in even for an hour to say hello, where they’ll get a friendly smile and some warm food. The tree will be light up, and hopefully we’ll have some entertainment from our local celebrities, which is a surprise.
“There will no doubt be someone getting up to sing.”
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