Demand at an all time high

As the festive season nears, City of Mount Gambier Mayor Lynette Martin encourages the local community to consider the less fortunate by providing a donation to the 2023 Mount Gambier Community Mayor’s Christmas Appeal.

Demand for assistance from local support agencies is expected to be greater than ever this Christmas due to increasing cost of living pressures.

“Christmas is not always a happy time for everyone in our community and as Mayor, I would like to work towards ensuring that we enable as many people as possible to experience the joy of Christmas,” Mayor Martin said.

“I thank the agencies for the role they play in our community throughout the year and for joining with me at Christmas time to provide food hampers, gifts and vouchers to those in need.”

The local community raised more than $40,000 for the appeal last year, which is distributed to local support agencies including Uniting Care, ac.care, St Vincent de Paul and The Salvation Army to provide food hampers, vouchers and gifts through the Christmas Cheer program. Collectively, the agencies assisted approximately approximately 728 adults, 219 teenagers and more than 481 children in 2022.

“The agencies have advised me that the number of requests for assistance they are receiving on a daily basis has increased and therefore they predict the demand for this Christmas will be greater than ever before in the history of the appeal,” Mayor Martin said.

“Donors to the appeal have been so generous over the past few years but if the need for assistance keeps rising we may struggle to meet the demand and therefore I urge you to consider donating whatever you can.”

ac.care Homelessness and Community Services Senior Manager Trish Spark encouraged anyone who may find themselves struggling financially this Christmas to register for support from the appeal by visiting or contacting ac.care or the other supported agencies.

“We are expecting the levels of demand to be higher this year due to cost of living,” Ms Sparks said.

“We are currently assisting people with food and utilities bills that we haven’t seen before.

“Many people who are just able to manage throughout the year without support will also be requiring assistance at Christmas as they don’t have that extra money for toys and Christmas food.”

The City of Mount Gambier supports the Mount Gambier Community Mayor’s Christmas Appeal by acting as a collection point for the agencies.

Donations can also be made through the following channels:

• By phoning (08) 8721 2555 with your credit card details on hand. Council staff will email you a tax invoice.
• In person at the City of Mount Gambier Customer Service counter – Civic Centre, 10 Watson Terrace.
• By sending a cheque made out to ‘City of Mount Gambier’ PO Box 56 Mount Gambier SA 5290 with advice that the cheque is a donation to the Community Mayor’s Christmas Appeal, to enable a tax invoice to be issued.
• Tins and a ‘tap and go’ EFTPOS system will also be available at local businesses.