Staff at a Nottinghamshire funeral directors have pledged to support a host of community food banks after they teamed up with a local church and town council to launch an outdoor, Covid-safe version of their annual Christmas tree appeal.
Gillotts Funeral Directors has rung the changes for its Christmas Tree Remembrance Appeal for 2020 after social distancing rules meant that it could not be run the same way as it has done for the past 15 years.
Previously, the company has donated £1 for every message of remembrance left on the branches of Christmas trees erected in the receptions of its offices in Eastwood, Kimberley, Selston, Stapleford and Heanor, across the border in Derbyshire.
Joanne Hutsby, left, and Anthony Topley, partners at Gillotts Funeral Directors, launch the company’s Christmas Tree Remembrance appeal which is aiming to raise money to help four local foodbanks.
Covid rules mean that visitors are no longer able to enter their premises, so Gillotts has instead erected a 20ft real tree in the grounds of St Lawrence’s Church in Heanor and is inviting families to hang their message there instead.
The tree, which has been hung with festive lights by Heanor and Loscoe Town Council, will also be decorated by coloured ribbons hung on its branches by worshippers and local residents to signify their thoughts or prayers, with each colour representing a different sentiment, such as green for hope, red for celebration and gold for thanks.
Alternatively, families can contact staff at their local Gillotts office, and they will hang their message on their behalf.
Gillotts raises around £2,000 each year through its Christmas appeal and will this year split the proceeds between four food banks serving the five towns it operates in.
Anthony Topley, a partner in Gillotts Funeral Directors, said: “Our Christmas Tree Remembrance Appeal has become an important part of our company calendar, but sadly there was no way for us to hold it in the usual way because of the need to keep everybody safe and well.
“This has been such a difficult time for everybody and we felt it would be a sorry state of affairs if we had to cancel it, so we’re therefore delighted that St Lawrence’s and the town council have worked with us to erect a full-size tree for their messages.
“We felt that it was only right for us to donate the money raised to our five nearest food banks which will be keeping local families from going hungry this year and which deserve our support in this year of all years.”
READ MORE: Nottinghamshire funeral firm Gillotts adjusting to new norm as coronavirus lockdown eases.
Funeral directors Gillotts has launched its Christmas Tree Remembrance Appeal for 2020 and have hung baubles on a 20ft tree in Heanor.
One of the food banks that it has pledged to support is the Eastwood Volunteer Bureau, which serves families in Eastwood and Kimberley.
Bureau manager Susan Bagshaw says that this year it is busier than ever, with hard-pressed families affected by the coronavirus asking for help to feed their children.
She said: “We have been getting anywhere between 40 and 85 people coming along to our food bank, which is about twice as many people as used to come to see us this time last year.
“We give them parcels with items such as meat and pasta, as well as cereal and tins and bread. People who come to us are embarrassed, but we all realise how important this service is to them.
“We’re very grateful that Gillotts have agreed to help us and any donation we receive will be much appreciated because winter is coming up and we realise how much people will continue to rely on us.”
Families can leave their messages of remembrance on the tree by visiting www.gillotts.co.uk/christmas20
