The 2022 Team Hope Christmas Shoebox Appeal, launched recently, aims to deliver as many gift-filled shoeboxes as possible to children, for whom poverty is their every-day reality, and make smiles happen. And they need your help.
Team Hope is calling on parents, children, teachers, families and communities to build-a-box at home or online to help them reach their goal of 200,000 shoeboxes this year – remember, that’s smiles on 200,000 children’s faces in 13 countries across Africa and Eastern Europe. To date, they have donated 2.1 million shoeboxes to children affected by poverty.
Cork Contact, Team Hope Christmas Shoebox Appeal Manager Jonathan Douglas, said: “For the children who receive these shoeboxes at Christmas, it’s wonderful for them to know that people across Ireland are thinking of them and have taken time out to send joy and hope to them. We’ve always had such brilliant support from schools, families and communities from all over and we’re hoping to see the same fantastic response to the Shoebox Appeal again in 2022”.
BUILD YOUR SPECIAL BOX
It has never been easier to build a shoebox. All you have to do is find an empty shoebox, wrap it in Christmas paper and fill it with gifts for a boy or girl aged between 2 and 14, give online or attach a €4 donation and bring it to a local drop off point before the deadline of Tuesday, November 8th – or you can build-a-box online by donating at www.teamhope.ie. One of Team Hope’s local partners will build a box on your behalf on-the-ground and make sure it goes where it’s needed most.
When considering the best items to gift, think of the 4W’s: Wear – Gloves, hat, scarf, socks, top, underwear; Wash – Comb, soap, sponge, toothbrush and toothpaste, washcloth; Write – Colouring pencils, notepad, writing accessories; Wow – Think of items like musical instruments, puzzles, a ball, a skipping rope, a soft toy or a toy car.
FERMOY DROP-OFF
Team Hope Shoebox Week runs this year from October 31st to November 6th and to get involved you’ll find plenty of inspiration on gifts to include, or not, in your shoebox, how to donate and where to drop off your shoebox at www.teamhope.ie. In Fermoy, the local contact is Christine Dobson (025-27661 or 087-2514099), while in Mallow the Team Hope office can be contacted through the Dublin number 01-2940222.
THE JOY OF GIVING
There are so many benefits to the Team Hope Christmas Shoebox Appeal. It is so important for the child who receives it, both for the joy the physical gifts bring and for them to know that people are thinking about them. There are also benefits for the child that donates.
Dr. Malie Coyne, a clinical psychologist who specialises in working with children and families said: “Study after study has shown that volunteering improves our mental health. Being kind and showing altruism for others boosts serotonin, which is the neurotransmitter responsible for feelings of satisfaction and well-being, a phenomenon also known as a “helper’s high”. It reduces stress, strengthens the immune system and increases happiness. In a world which can often feel topsy-turvy for children, involving your child in creating a shoebox empowers them to make a real and tangible difference in another child’s life.”
Follow Team Hope on Facebook at www.facebook.com/team.hope.ireland and Twitter @TeamHopeIreland and Instagram @TeamHopeIreland
#MakeAChildSmile #EveryShoeboxCounts #ChristmasShoeboxAppeal
