Sallies bring hope for Christmas

Lieutenant Simon Montgomery and Countdown Stratford store manager Raylee Sattler.

Lieutenant Simon Montgomery from the Stratford Salvation Army wants to bring hope to life this Christmas by providing support to some families in the Stratford community.

'Bring Hope To Life' is a national campaign run by The Salvation Army with the support Countdown supermarkets.

Simon says while for most New Zealanders the Christmas season is a time of joy and hope for the new year, for many others it is a time of extreme stress trying to provide for Christmas.

"We have seen an increase in the number of people in the Stratford community reaching out for help in the last 12 months, in the way of food parcels, emergency accommodation and welfare."

In Taranaki as a region The Salvation Army has seen a 30 per cent rise in the number of people needing food parcels already in the year to September compared to the same time last year.

Countdown Stratford will be donating a shopping trolley with $500 worth of groceries to The Salvation Army, and an additional shopping trolley has been prepared to take donations from the community.

Simon says, "If everyone adds just one additional item in their weekly shop, it could make a huge impact on those in need this Christmas."

The Salvation Army donation trolley will be at Countdown Stratford until December 23, in time for Simon and the team at the Stratford Salvation Army to prepare the parcels for Christmas.