General News
19 December, 2024
'Tis the season for giving
It started as the seed of a dream in Dimboola but quickly grew into a concept that the entire shire was eager to embrace.
Hindmarsh Shire's Christmas Giving Tree initiative has gone from strength to strength since it was first proposed to then acting CEO Monica Revell just over 12 months ago.
The idea put forward by Dimboola Library member Chelsea, aged just 11 at the time, was immediately rolled out across all four Hindmarsh libraries.
Chelsea's wish was to inspire the community to donate gifts to help brighten the festive season for local families who were finding life tough.
Now, in only its second year, the Christmas Giving Tree has generated 231 gifts for a cross-section of ages – 40 more than in 2023.
Chelsea counted the donations last Friday and then delivered all 231 to The Salvation Army just in time to be packed safely into Santa's sleigh.
Mrs Revell described Chelsea as "excited" and said the shire and Chelsea wanted to "extend their heartfelt thanks to each person who has contributed to this amazing cause and aided in making this Christmas a bit merrier for families in need".