ONE hundred gift packages were donated to the Blenheim House Care Home by Melksham girl, Megan Thomas, who was worried that some residents at the care home may not receive gifts this year.
The gift packages that Megan put together were funded through a sponsored silence and donations from family, friends and the community. Due to the support received, Megan has exceeded the target of how many packages she wanted to make and is now making additional gift packages to hand out to vulnerable people in the community.
Gifts in the packages include soap bars, chocolate, handmade crocheted and knitted decorations, lavender and other small items. Tesco and Co-op donated chocolate bars and coins, and Sainsbury’s donated satsumas. Friends of Megan’s mother at a local church knitted blankets and place mats, as well as providing help with knitting the decorations.
Megan said, “I decided to make the Christmas gift bags for the residents because I like to see smiles on people’s faces. I asked my family and friends if they would support me and possibly donate bars of soap and make crocheted and knitted Christmas tree decorations. I wrote letters to Tesco and Coop and they kindly donated chocolate.
“My family and friends in Wiltshire, Wales and Australia donated money to buy lavender, chocolate, paper bags and laminating pouches. One friend donated 100 packets of biscuits and another invited me over to her house to make hand-made soaps. Everyone has been so generous! It took two months for me to gather all the supplies I needed and I decorated every bag by hand. I would like to say a big thank you for all the support that has been given and I hope that the bags will make a big difference to the residents’ lives and brighten their Christmas. Blenheim House has invited Megan to their Christmas party and to help Father Christmas hand out some gifts, along with Megan’s gifts.
Megan said, “I’m looking forward to being an elf at their Christmas party and spending the afternoon with them!”
Thanking Megan for donating the gifts, general manager at Blenheim House, Clare Hodges said, “On behalf of all the residents and staff here at Blenheim House, we’re enormously grateful for this kind gesture. Megan’s generosity epitomises the community we’re so lucky to live in here in Melksham. As a home, we very much see ourselves as a part of the local community. This thoughtful act demonstrates the clear bond we have with our village.”