Christmas Appeal
Together for Christmas
Thanks to our client, Claire*, for sharing how your support has helped get her family back on track.
“I felt like a complete failure. My children are my world, and the thought of not having one of them with me for Christmas was like half my heart had been cut out,” Claire says.
“Growing up, there was domestic violence, instability and abuse. I struggled at school and, as a teenager, turned to drugs and alcohol to try to fill the sadness I carried. I became a young mum, but when my daughter was placed in my grandmother’s care, I knew I needed to make changes. I didn’t want my kids to grow up as I had.
“My caseworker referred me to Lutheran Care’s Family Zone. For the first time in a long time, I felt heard and understood. Their care of me just felt like a big hug – something I haven’t really known before. With counselling, support for my substance use, financial counselling, parenting courses and a course around identifying coercive control, I began to understand my trauma, build my confidence and make safer choices for myself and my children. I also made friends who have become an important part of my life.
“With Lutheran Care’s support, I received a referral letter recommending reunification with my daughter. We’re working towards this, starting with supervised visits and sleepovers. I’m so happy.
“This year, we’ve signed up for Lutheran Care’s Christmas Hamper program, so both my children will receive presents, along with Christmas lunch and other goodies. I can’t wait to have us all together, signing our little hearts out watching Carols by Candlelight on Christmas Eve.
“I can’t put into words how grateful I am to the kind strangers who support families like mine. The Lutheran Care team started out as strangers and now they’re like my family. I used to think most people wanted to hurt you or get something out of you. Now I know that isn’t true.
“I don’t have a lot to give right now, but sharing my story is something I can give. It might not be the happiest story but I know that things are going to keep getting better for us. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.”
*Pseudonym used to protect our client’s anonymity.
*Names and images have been de-identified to protect clients’ privacy.
Christmas Appeal
Christmas 2026 could be a turning point for a struggling family, with your help.
This Christmas, Lutheran Care will assist families such as Claire’s with food and gifts to bring some joy and lighten the load. Your gift will also fund and expand important programs to help more vulnerable families have a happier new year ahead.
- $20 - helps keep our Emergency Relief pantry stocked, in preparation for growing demand this Christmas season.
- $60 - will fund a Christmas Hamper for a family in need, including festive foods and age-appropriate gifts for children, to help them have a Christmas celebration.
- $150 - empowers parents with skills and confidence through workshops, support groups, counselling, playgroups and a crèche - helping families begin the new year with hope.
- $250 - provides crucial support for people facing challenges like homelessness, family violence, and mental health concerns, which can often be exacerbated at Christmas time.
- $1000 - will feel like a Christmas miracle for a family escaping violence or homelessness, linking them with emergency housing, clothing, toys, furniture, and essentials.
Lutheran Care
Christmas Angels
You are invited to make a donation in honour of a loved one you are missing this Christmas.
Click here to make an online donation, using the ‘Christmas Appeal’ option. When you include your loved one’s details, we’ll create a special angel decoration in their honour and display it proudly on our Lutheran Care Christmas tree.
If you’d like to download an angel to decorate and display at home, click here.
Make a donation in honour of a loved one you are missing this Christmas, and be a Christmas angel for a family you’ll never meet.
Christmas can be a difficult time of year when someone you love is no longer here. Many of us will have an empty seat at the Christmas table this year.
We invite you to honour your late loved one with a gift to someone in need this Christmas.
Honouring your loved one with a donation is easy. Simply click here to donate online, using the ‘Christmas Appeal’ option. To celebrate both your donation and your loved one, we can create a unique angel decoration in their honour and display it proudly on our Lutheran Care Christmas tree. You can personalise your dedication, via the donation form, too. For example, “In honour of our grandmother Kate, from John, Alice and the kids”; or “In honour of David, from your grandchildren Kyle and Ava from Nuriootpa.”
If you and your family would like to download your own angel to decorate and display at home, click here.
Thanks for being an angel for a family you’ll never meet.
