Boaz 2012 is our Christmas and New Year appeal. The idea is to raise enough money so that we can give every Boaz resident a basic needs package worth £20 every week. We have a growing number of clients, each with a variety of needs, and we want to show generosity to every single person. If you’d like to be part of that, we’d love to hear from you…

What is a basic needs package?

Boaz clients don’t have any income of their own because they can’t legally work, and they can’t access benefits either. This leaves them completely destitute. Here at Boaz we support every person with money for food and travel costs each week, so they can attend appointments with health and legal professionals, visit friends and access activities, classes and training opportunities offered by Boaz and other organisations.

A typical basic needs package covers food, toiletries and travel expenses.  At the moment we spend roughly £13 on each person every week, but with rising food and travel prices this is no longer sufficient. That’s why we want to increase it to £20 per person- but we can’t afford to do it without your help!

Christmas is a great time to be generous, and the new year is a perfect opportunity to commit to new things. So why not combine the two and commit to giving regularly to this cause?! For full details of the appeal, visit the new page about it, or contact us for more info!

As a Christian-inspired event there will be a time for worship and prayer, focused around the theme of Advent, as well as a bring-and-share meal. All are welcome, please bring some food if you can!

It’s happening on Saturday 19th November at 6pm at 110 Oldham Road, Ancoats, M4 6AG. You’ll also have an opportunity to buy Christmas cards there so bring your wallets!

The cards this year are inspired by some of the different languages Boaz clients speak. We are really honoured by the diversity different cultures, communities and nationalities bring to the Boaz family and wanted to find a way to express that. So, this year, each of the 5 card designs contain a different word associated with Christmas, in English, French, Amharic, Punjabi, Farsi and Urdu.

Cards come in packs of 5 for £2.50. Postage and packaging is extra- please ask for details.

Here are the 5 designs:

If you’d like to order some cards, please email us or phone the office on 0161 2021056 to do so. We’d be more than happy to help you get in the festive spirit!

christmas cards

Cards come in packs of 5 (with 5 different designs) for £2.50, and they’ll be available direct from the Boaz office  (110 Oldham Road, M4 6AG), or we can post them to you (with additional P&P costs). Please contact our fundraising rep, Lucy, on 0161 2021056 or email her to find out more details!

Spread the word, and get buying! All proceeds will go direct to our work with destitute asylum seekers.

If you fancy doing things a bit differently this year, please consider our Alternative Gifts Catalogue, where there are practical gift ideas ranging from £5 to £100. You can buy online by using our Store facility, just click here for more info.

Can you spare £3?

That’s all it costs to buy a hot water bottle, and it could make a huge difference to many of our clients in this cold snap. Many of them are from warmer countries and find it very hard to adjust to British weather at the best of times. It’s pretty obvious from the weather reports in the last fortnight that this is most definitely the worst of times!

Please do consider sending us a donation for a hot water bottle, or pop one in the post. If you live in Manchester, why not drop in to the Ancoats office and give us a cheery Christmas hug while you’re at it?

Thanks to all those who have donated recently, whether that’s time, hampers of food and drink or financial support. We are so very grateful.

We’ve put together some suggestions but if you have any questions or want to discuss these options further please get in touch at office@boaztrust.org.uk, or 0161 202 1056.

Ideas

Give the gift of choice

For many of our clients, getting decent clothes, food and toiletries is a real treat, and we want to give them the best of the bunch! So we would really love you to consider buying a £10 voucher for any of the following shops…

Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda, Superdrug, Debenhams or M&S

…and enable our clients to buy what they really want this Christmas!

If you have already donated clothes, food or other bits and bobs to Boaz, thank you! We will package these up along with a gift voucher for our clients.

Support our seasonal shelter

The winter night shelter runs from November to April and costs £14,000 to keep open, 7 days a week for 5 chilly months. This is a big commitment and we need your help to keep it running.

Donations big and small are welcome – it costs £100 a night to run the shelter, providing beds for 10 destitute asylum seekers each night, so you could pay for a bed (£10), a night (£100) or a full week (£700)! Anything you give will make a significant difference.

Thank you!

These are two of the designs with the message inside displayed...

The message inside all the cards reads: ‘May you know joy and peace this Christmas and in the coming year’.

Cards cost 50p each, or a pack of 10 for £5. They are designed and made by destitute asylum seekers through the Meaningful Lives activities programme, supported by a dedicated team of volunteers.

Pop into the office to pick up your packs, or email office@boaztrust.org.uk for more info. We look forward to hearing from you and wish you a fantastic Christmas!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUfVhaqW0xU