Travel and Tourism students with the presents for children at West Suffolk Hospital.
This week saw West Suffolk College students and staff delivering presents to West Suffolk Hospital’s children’s ward in order to make a child in care smile this Christmas.
The ‘Christmas tree event’ had been created with the idea being that staff and students take a tag from the Christmas tree in the reception area which will give them an age and gender of a child they then buy a gift for.
Led by Nicola Tabb, Course Director for Level 3 Active Leisure and Tourism who said “The students have worked so well on this, we have already delivered some presents to the Fostering and Adoption team at West Suffolk House and on Thursday this week we will be heading to the children’s ward at West Suffolk hospital.”
Staff at the college had been advised that there is a mix of both boys and girls with ages ranging from 0-18 years old and the decided price range for each gift was between £10-£15. Once a tag had been taken from the Christmas tree in the reception area of the college, staff brought a suitable gift and then wrapped the present and attached the tag to the gift.
Karen Wright, Course Director for Progression to Beauty at the college who brought three separate gifts for this initiative said “I felt this was such an inspirational, unselfish idea that brings the true meaning of Christmas to life! Today’s society often gets so totally absorbed by technology and what everyone wants for themselves! This was a great opportunity to enable people to reflect and think about those less fortunate than them self, and to be able to do a kind gesture to help make another person’s Christmas a little bit special for them!
Lauren Mannion, age 17 from Thetford and Sai Pongnop, age 18 from Newmarket who have both taken part in the project said “On behalf of our whole class we are so pleased that we could be a part of making the children’s Christmas that bit more special.”