LOCAL foodbanks are bracing themselves for a busy winter ahead, with demand from families for Christmas hampers already surging.
With almost a quarter of families in Fermanagh living in relative poverty, this is a time when food banks, toy appeals and looking out for one another are needed most.
John Shades, owner of the Enniskillen Food Bank, told the ‘Herald demand for help had soared this year.
“As of the 31st of October, we already had orders for 190 hampers for Christmas,” he explained.
“I expect to have 300 hampers for local families by December. Each hamper can feed a family of four, so that works out at around 1,200 people needing assistance.”
Each hamper contains roughly 16 kilograms of food, and the food bank works closely with agencies across the county to ensure help reaches those who need it most.
“The most effective way to get them to the right people is to work with agencies already supporting vulnerable families in genuine need,” John said.
He admits Christmas can be an especially difficult time for many families.
“There are a few compounding factors, peer pressure if you’ve got kids, wanting to keep up with others, the rise in prices, and now even school dinners have gone up by 50p,” he said.
“If you’ve more than one child, that really adds up.
“Then winter hits, and oil and electric bills rise, it all becomes too much. For some, it can just push them over the edge.”
Festive pressures
John added that the pressure to give children a ‘normal’ Christmas often leads families into debt.
“I recently heard about someone paying off toys from a catalogue over 104 weeks, still paying for two Christmases after,” he said.
“Companies make it easy to build up debt, and that pressure, especially on parents, is immense.”
Despite the challenges, John says the community spirit in Fermanagh shines brightest at this time of year.
“Schools, GAA clubs, businesses, they all donate. Even something simple like a box of chocolates can make such a difference,” he said.
“The empathy and kindness in our community are amazing to see.”
For anyone wanting to help, John suggests three ways: donate time to help pack hampers, donate money to buy supplies, or donate products at local supermarkets.
“People might just need us for Christmas,” he said.
“We gave away 15 tonnes of food last December alone. We couldn’t do it without the community.”
