Posted online: Jan 11th, 2012

By Anna Devine
The St Vincent de Paul in Letterkenny has said that the generosity shown by the community in Letterkenny over Christmas was “just amazing.”
Speaking to the Letterkenny Post, Rose Glacken, Letterkenny area president said that, “people came from everywhere to give us donations.”
At the beginning of December, they were very worried they would be inundated with requests and that they might not be able to meet demand but the community was more than generous.
Ms Glacken said they had a “very successful church gate collection” followed by donations of cash, vouchers, gifts and food from business groups, community groups, schools and individuals. “We were overwhelmed at the generosity shown by people and we are very grateful.”
She continued: “I think people are thinking a lot more about community now. We’d like to see more support for neighbours that may be living alone though.”
Ms Glacken confirmed that they had more people contacting them than previous years although exact figures are not available at present. The general consensus from volunteers countrywide was that “everybody was extremely busy and much busier than other years.” In 2010, the amount of people seeking help from SVP increased by 40%.
Ms Glacken says that they were worried that people who hadn’t come to them before would be unable to take that first step.
“People find it difficult to make that first call,” she said. “We’re very anxious to reach out to people who maybe experiencing financial difficulties.
“January is a very difficult time, with a lot of worry, new charges and VAT increases that affect prices across the board.”
The SVP are here to help people from all walks of life – families with youngsters or children at college, older people, students and individuals that just want a listening ear.
“We try to do it in a sensitive way. It is a core principal of the SVP that all services are highly confidential,” she said.
You can contact the SVP at Lower Main Street (074 9129503) or Aughininshin (074 9122366).