Thank you for all your help during 2022.

To all volunteers, and contributors to the Work of The Parish Trust:

Today marks the final day of food parcel packing shifts and deliveries until we close for the Christmas break to remember Christ’s birth. Having said that, some volunteers are opening up on Christmas Day to provide lunch for those who would otherwise find Christmas day a lonely day in the calendar. That is true dedication and love for the community. I only wish I could be there, except for the fact that I am taking Christmas services!

I write this from my office at our HQ, at the break of dawn, when no one else is here, and Beth, our cleaner, has only just left. It feels like the calm before the storm, because the building will be a hive of activity later on today.

But that’s the beauty of the work we do here. No day is the same. We meet many thousands of people from all different backgrounds and walks of life. We see the best, and worst of society. We try and help where we can.

We have a small staff team, who have a big heart. And we have a faithful family of volunteers who have helped us get through this year. We also have all those who are connected to us because they donate to us – whether that be food, money, or knitted items.

We couldn’t do what we do without the hard work of everyone who has pulled together to make The Parish Trust what it is.

And so this message is written here simply to say thank you for your faithfulness to us, your generosity, and your willingness to help. It truly warms my heart to see people still investing their time and their money in the charity to help others, especially in these difficult economic circumstances.

For us as a Christian charity, service is everything. We have been heartened by the countless individuals, whether they share our faith or not, who have served us, and served others this year. We remember Jesus telling his friends, “… the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” – Matthew 20:25-28.

We want to be servants here at The Parish Trust, and we have been given so many examples of that this year because of all of you who have given so much. Thank you again, from the bottom of my heart.