Logan residents are prioritising putting food on the table over gifts for their children this Christmas, local charities have revealed.
For weeks, Logan’s support service organisations have warned of tough times ahead for vulnerable locals.
And although several services will be closed for the holidays, there is still assistance available for those in need.
Serving Our People, a local emergency relief charity, will keep their doors open up until Christmas Day – delivering food and toys around Logan and providing free food at the newly opened The People’s Market.
“We’ve got a toy drive which is for children who have suffered from domestic violence,” Serving Our People founder Yas Matbouly said.
“At the same time, we’ve got a lot of toys at our People’s Market for people who can’t afford to buy gifts this time of the year.
“Believe it or not, after talking to our recipients and asking them what they want to give their children for Christmas, a lot are asking for food.
“We’ve never seen that before, and we’ve been doing this toy drive for three years.”
He said the Feeding Our People campaign, which has seen thousands of food deliveries across the city, would also continue.
The People’s Market, located at KENG Tudor Park, is open every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10am to 3pm.
It will be closed on Christmas Day.
A spokesperson from food and emergency relief charity Lighthouse Care said staff had been “inundated” with people seeking support ahead of Christmas.
Lighthouse Care has two stores that provide discounted groceries up to 70% off and $25 dollar trolleys of food, located at Loganholme and Hillcrest
Both stores are closed on public holidays but will run up until Christmas Day.
The organisation is also holding a Hampers for Hope initiative that will see locals in need receive hampers filled with essential items like toys and groceries.
To join the waitlist, email santa@lighthousecare.org.au.
Lighthouse Care is also holding a Christmas wish list service, in which 400 local kids get to write their own gift list which will be handed over to “Santa’s little helpers”.
To seek support visit lighthousecare.org.au.
The CEO of financial services organisation YFS, Christopher John, said Christmas would be “particularly hard for many this year”.
He said it was important for people to pay rent and mortgages before purchasing presents.
“Kids are better off with a home and modest presents then more expensive presents,” Mr John said.
Mr John commended the “amazing generosity” from the local community to support those in need by providing gifts for children.
“This is much appreciated with so many more people in our region facing homelessness or unable to afford Christmas presents due to the rising cost of living,” he said.
“YFS is now receiving around 35 calls a day from people who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless.
“Our financial hub is also hearing from more and more people who are risk of becoming homeless due to rent arrears and mortgage defaults.”
YFS will be available for urgent matters between Christmas and New Year and can be contacted on 3826 1500 if you need support on these days.
Co-director of domestic violence charity Defenders for Hope, Tomeeka Smith, said the Defenders team was “always here to help”.
“A lot of locals are in need and a lot of families are doing it tough – there’s a lot of hard times during Christmas,” she said.
“People need food on the table, but there’s no childcare so they can’t work, and some parents aren’t getting paid over Christmas – so it’s a hard time of the year.”
Defenders has op shops at Hillcrest, Jimboomba and Logan Village.
The team can be contacted on their Facebook page or at defendersforhope@gmail.com.
