Be a light to Faith in Families this Christmas

Covid-19 has had a devastating – and disproportionate – effect on our poorest communities, with rising levels of food poverty, unemployment and social isolation.

Faith in Families has been at the heart of those communities throughout the pandemic, hard at work helping those in crisis.

The charity, part of the diocese’s Board for Social Responsibility, runs three family centres in Swansea and the St John’s Centre in Brecon and had been planning to celebrate its 21st anniversary this summer.

Instead, its staff were busy delivering hundreds of food parcels and care packs, providing hundreds of online activities, collecting and delivering prescriptions and distributing toys and iPads to families in need.

Now it is asking for your help as it seeks to inspire people to believe and succeed for another 21 years.

Faith in Families CEO Cherrie Bija said: “I am incredibly proud of what my teams have achieved during these challenging times, but now as we move forward, with the consequences of the pandemic disproportionately affecting those who were already dealing with adversity, we are needed more than ever in the communities we seek to serve.

“Please support our vital work not just at Christmas but in the months to come as we reach out to those who are more vulnerable now than ever before.”

That call has been echoed by Archbishop John, who said: “Usually, at this time of the year, lots of churches would have been holding Christingle services which celebrate the light of the Lord Jesus and at which there’d be a collection which would be donated to Faith in Families. This year is very different and most, if not all, of those services won’t be happening. That doesn’t mean to say the work of Faith in Families won’t be carrying on, but it does mean that Faith in Families won’t receive the financial support which they might normally expect to receive from those services.

“Among the things which Faith in Families are doing at the moment is preparing hampers to distribute to families in need. That effort will bring light to people who might otherwise be pretty much in the darkness.

“So remember the work of Faith in Families continues and remember, please, that it needs your support in order to continue. If you would normally be going to a Christingle service this year but are not able to go, think about donating to Faith in Families what you might have put into the collection envelopes. Support them in that way or, in fact, in any way you can, because their work is not being overcome by the present circumstances. Their work continues and their work is vital.”

To find out more about Faith in Families, and to donate, visit faithinfamilies.wales