Bolton Clarke Fairview Spreads Christmas Cheer Through Charity

The residents of Bolton Clarke Fairview have been busy in the lead up to Christmas with their charitable activities. 

A special Christmas tree has been set up in the hall of the Retirement Village and has been filled with donated gifts to the ‘Save the Children’ charity a not-for-profit organisation which provides assistance to children in crisis through access to shelter, healthcare and education. 

The gifts were donated to representatives from the charity on Tuesday and will be sent to four safe houses in Brisbane which shelter families who are victims of domestic violence.

Save the Children worker Kirstin was overwhelmed by the generosity of the donations.

“Many of the children who live in our shelters would be going without presents on Christmas day if it wasn’t for the charity of the residents here. The effort everyone has gone to is just wonderful and some of the gifts are even handmade which is even more special,” she said.

Retirement Village Manager, Kathy Cook said her residents have been donating toys at Christmas since 1997.

“Our resident Edna along with seven others, were the first to get together and organise this type of charitable activity,” she said. 

“This was the catalyst for all the other social activities we do at Fairview and bought them all together.”

Edna now in her nineties has passed the torch on to resident Brenda who organises the annual collection. Edna came to admire the legacy she had left on Tuesday and said it was one of the best things she has ever done.

Hundreds of children have woken up on Christmas morning to receive gifts because of her and the first residents of the village.

The residents of Fairview are very active in their charitable activities along with their donations to the ‘Save the Children’ charity they have recently sent boxes of donated goods to the victims of drought in Longreach.  

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