12 Days Of Christmas Giving

Christmas is the season of giving and after last year's disrupted celebrations, spreading joy and good will feels more important than ever. If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's the importance of supporting our communities as well as doing our bit for those who need it the most.

As you might know, this Christmas we decided to make charity donations. In these tough times, it just seemed the right thing to do. So, for each day of our 12 Days of Christmas giving campaign, we chose a charity and made a donation of money. For instance, we gave £1,000 to Porchlight, to help them with their excellent work on homelessness in Kent. We donated £1,250 each to three food banks that operate in areas we trade; we decided to support two mental health charities - North Kent Mind and LawCare; we also rescued animals with The Retreat Animal Rescue and planted trees thanks to our partnership with more:trees.

As part of this campaign, we have supported 12 amazing realities and donated over £8,000 in total. These were all donations to charities that our team feel particularly passionate about, and that continue to make an incredible effort in difficult circumstances. The wonderful feedback we received just shows that every little bit really does help, and we hope you will join us in supporting them as well!

Kate Boulding, Corporate Partnerships Manager at Porchlight - "We expect more people than ever will need our help this winter. More than 9,300 households in Kent could be facing homelessness by the end of the year because protections allowing them to keep a roof over their heads – such as the furlough scheme and the eviction ban – have now ended. The support we’re receiving from Martin Tolhurst and other organisations in Kent means we can continue to be there for the most vulnerable people in our communities. We want to say a massive thank you to them for choosing to support us and raising awareness of our work this festive season."

Andrew Keeping, CEO at FASD Awareness - "Thank you so much to all at Martin Tolhurst Solicitors for your support of FASD Awareness this Christmas. FASD can be the outcome in individuals whose parents were either not aware of the dangers of alcohol use during pregnancy or were not being supported to stay healthy and strong during pregnancy. Please this Christmas support your partners or family members who are pregnant and abstaining from drinking alcohol."

Billy H Thompson, Founder & Project Director at The Retreat Animal Rescue - “During the winter our centre closes to the public so our income stream rapidly decreases. Your donation will help us do more to save those animals directly affected by the harsh weather. Thank you Martin Tolhurst!”

Jemma Kemp, Senior Supporter Engagement Officer at ellenor Charity - "We are honoured to have been supported by Martin Tolhurst Solicitors for over 20 years. We share the same values in providing the very best support to our local community. This very kind donation of £350 could help fund a Specialist Community Nurse for a whole day. Thank you to the team at Martin Tolhurst Solicitors for helping to keep us by the sides of our families this Christmas." 

Anna Buttimore, Support Services Manager at LawCare - “Thank You so much for this kind and generous donation towards our work. It is very much appreciated. This amount could cover a course of professional counselling for someone calling our helpline who might otherwise be unable to afford it, or could help us train a volunteer, or cover the cost of running the support service for a day. We’re a small charity with a big remit so we really do appreciate all donations received.”

Jen Coates, SANDS Director of Volunteering and Bereavement Support Services - “Thank you to everyone at Martin Tolhurst Solicitors for their kind donation of £350. As we head into the Christmas and New Year holidays, our dedicated bereavement support team will be here for anyone who has been through pregnancy loss or baby loss. This time of year can be especially difficult for bereaved families, and this donation could help Sands answer ten calls for help from anyone struggling during the holidays.” 

Kimberley Tough, Fundraising Officer at North Kent Mind - “We are so grateful to Martin Tolhurst for this wonderful donation. We are in the process of transforming the Almshouse (our Dartford base) Garden back to its original beauty. We are excited to start this gardening project because it is such a great way to improve mental health and wellbeing for our service users.”

Lorraine Shulze, Project Manager at the Medway Foodbank - "We are incredibly grateful for the kind support from Martin Tolhurst Solicitors. This is an incredibly busy winter for the foodbank with many people in Medway facing difficult times. This support will help us to help those in need."