How To Help The Lonely Elderly This Christmas

It’s that time of year again where family and friends unite for the festive season, but some elderly people have to spend Christmas day alone.  Luckily there are ways that we can help the lonely elderly this year.

1. Charities

If you are not sure what you can do to make a difference, charities are the way to go.  From organising community Christmas dinners to fundraising, charities have a lot to offer.

‘Community Christmas’ listed over 500 activities on Christmas day last year, which benefited an estimate of 15,500 over 75s.

Caroline Billington, founder of Community Christmas said: ‘With half a million older people facing Christmas Day alone, we need to do more.  Our vision is that no older person in the UK is alone on Christmas day unless they want to be.  Holding an activity on Christmas day can help to empower older people to engage with their local community again.

We enable people to set up new events on Christmas day and provide a free website listing to all Christmas Day events and activities that want to be included.  This allows older people and those that care about them to do a post code search to find out what is going on in their area.  This also gives visibility to the great work being done by individuals and organisations around the country.’

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nZKdXLgN3E]

 

If you are stuck for fundraising ideas consider organising a quiz night, a sponsored run (you could even dress up as Santa!) or Christmas bingo.  There are lots of ways to raise money.

 

2. Christmas Dinners

Think about your own family, friends, or neighbours – do they all have a place to go for Christmas?  If not, invite them over to enjoy a Christmas dinner with you.

They might prefer to stay in the comfort of their own home and if this is the case, consider delivering a Christmas dinner to their home, or other classic delicious treats.

 

3. Donate

Organising fundraising events may not be your thing and fortunately there are other options. Charities such as Community Christmas, Age UK and Contact the Elderly all accept donations.

Providing charities with the vital funds they need means that they can continue supporting lonely elderly people.  No donation is too small – it all adds up and can make a real difference.

4.  Be kind

Mobility can sadly often be an issue for older people, making it difficult for them to buy food/gifts for Christmas.  If you can, offer to take someone Christmas shopping with you.  This means you could also help with carrying their shopping.

Alternatively, it may be useful to teach an older person how to use the internet so that they can shop and have their shopping to be delivered straight to their door.

 

It is important to spread kindness, generosity and positivity all year round, but particularly at Christmas as it as known as the time of giving and sharing.