Garth Rotary Club and Boomerang Cardiff will deliver the gifts to children living in poverty in Wales
A TOY appeal set up by Garth Rotary Club has received hundreds of donations from residents in Pentyrch, Creigiau and Gwaelod y Garth to help families in need this Christmas.
The club has been blown away by the response of the community, according to secretary Richard Porch.
“We’ve had so many volunteers, we’ve got more volunteers than streets,” he said.
“It’s really heartening how kind people have been.”
The 452 toys will be going to families living in poverty who are unable to afford Christmas presents this year.
The toy appeal received a great boost when Western Power Distribution donated £1,000 as part of their “In this Together – Community Matters Fund”.
This grant allowed Garth Rotary Club to purchase a further 77 toys from Toys ‘n’ Things on Wellfield Road in Roath.
The fund was started by Western Power Distribution to support charities and organisations that are helping those in their community during the pandemic.
Garth Rotary Club is working with Boomerang, a local homeless charity in Cardiff, to allocate and distribute the presents to families who are living in poverty.
Boomerang Cardiff is a charity driven by those with experience of homelessness, poverty and social isolation.
Paul Gwilym from Boomerang Cardiff said they are “totally overwhelmed with the response and many families across Cardiff will benefit because of this brilliant scheme.”
“It’s all about getting help to those who need it.”
Hundreds of toys have flooded in, including teddy bears, dolls, cars and games. Mr Porch said “we’ll have an army of brick layers after this because of all the building blocks donated.”
Highlighting the impact of the pandemic on their community, Norman Mathias, Chair of Garth Rotary Club, said “There’s a greater amount of people in need now who previously wouldn’t have been because their income has dried up totally.”
According to The Joseph Rowtree Foundation, before the pandemic three in 10 children in Wales were living in poverty.
Mr Porch said, “We feel it’s disgraceful that we have to do this in such a wealthy country. This shouldn’t ever be the case, but it is.”
The Joseph Rowtree Foundation is an independent organisation committed to solving UK poverty.
This is the first time Garth Rotary has organised a toy appeal but the club intends to continue the initiative in future.
Garth Rotary Club was formed a couple of years ago by residents of Pentyrch who had retired and “we’re looking for ways to give back to the community.”
Despite the pandemic’s obvious negative impact, according to Mr Porch it has brought the whole community together.
“It’s given us as a rotary club the opportunity, during COVID, to get all the community involved in doing these projects”, Mr Porch said.
The toys donated will “bring smiles to the faces of lots of children on Christmas morning” said Mr Porch.
If you or someone you know is in need, do not hesitate to contact Boomerang Cardiff for help or advice on 029 2049 7724
