Jason Ham - December 2022

Blessing people with food for thought at Christmas

As Elim’s Rediscover Church in Exeter delivered hundreds of hampers across Devon during Christmas 2022, they aimed to offer hope and faith connections to families in need.

In the run-up to Christmas 2022, amid a sea of Ikea bags, towers of pasta and piles of beans, a volunteer army is hard at work in Exeter.

The team is packing hundreds of hampers to bless families in need throughout Devon at Christmas.

The eight-year-old project began when Rediscover Church spotted an opportunity to help people in their area and extend their festive offerings beyond their regular festive services.

“At Christmas, we have an opportunity to bless people, share about Jesus and bring hope,” says operations coordinator Jason Ham.

“We often get together to share food at Christmas, so we thought how about we, as a church, could make hampers to support people who’ve had a difficult year and may be fearful or anxious during the festive season.”

In the first year, 50 hampers were given to people who were struggling financially, had been bereaved, were unemployed or had worked hard to support others and that the church was looking to bless and encourage.

But the project has exploded since then, so much so that 1,360 hampers were distributed in 2021. The increase came as needs grew in the community, and more requests for hampers were received.

“There was so much need after Covid,” says Jason. “And we know this year (December 2022) that people are experiencing fear and unrest as they figure out life in a cost of living crisis so we expect that need to get bigger. People are struggling, and we want to help in a real way.

“A project of this scale has a big financial need. We believe in a God who provides, so we approach it full of faith and expectation. We share about the project with the church community and ask if people would be willing to contribute money or supplies. Then we work with other organisations and businesses to access donations or grants. Ikea supplies all the bags, for example.

“A local car dealer also filled a whole car with food donations from customers. We’re really grateful and very thankful for all the support we get.”

As the mountains of pasta, rice, bread, mince pies, chocolates, sauces, beans, biscuits, and soup come in, the team are then in need of a place to pack them.

“Rediscover Church doesn’t have a big building, and with lots of activity already in our weekly schedule, we researched empty buildings across Exeter. Last year another church generously said we could use their space.”

The idea is that food items are gathered from November, then the packing and deliveries take place in December.

“Last December (2021), we were packing and distributing at the same time. Hundreds of tins of tuna, tea and mince pies were piling in as we were getting ready to send hampers out – it was great fun, and the team did amazingly!”

This mammoth exercise is made possible by the aforementioned volunteer army.

“People are so kind and heartfelt with their time, taking days off work to pack and distribute, which is really generous of them.

“We’re so grateful to each and every one of them. The majority of volunteers are from our church, and local organisations such as staff and residents at Exeter YMCA also kindly give up their time to assist.

“This is a big mission for us, and everyone gets stuck in – it’s all hands on deck, but it’s so rewarding to bless, help and support people during the festive season. It’s an amazing opportunity and honour God gives us.”

When deciding who to give the hampers to, the church already knows individuals, couples and families in need, but the vast majority of referrals come from local charities and organisations. The church works in partnership with these outside agencies to support people.

“Christmas 2021 was our biggest outreach for the Hamper Project. We worked with eight primary and secondary schools and had contacts from a domestic violence charity, CoLab, GP surgeries and Young Carers, social media housing providers, among other charities and organisations across the region. There is a homeless charity called Julian House which works with individuals who literally have nothing – each year, we have been honoured to help people in desperate need of food and struggling in a variety of ways.

“We also have an organisation called Devon Refugee Network and were able to give food to people who had just arrived in the city last year, along with those who had been here a long time.

“In December 2021, we know there’s been a large number of Ukrainian refugees, and there’s a great need there, so we’ll be giving hampers to those families to welcome them to the region and bless them.”

While Rediscover Church is based in Exeter, Jason says only 70% of the congregation comes from the city. With the others joining from across Devon, the church is well-placed for its widespread distribution.

The reactions, says Jason, make the whole operation worth the massive effort involved.

“People are so appreciative of the hampers. But there is also a mixture of responses. Sometimes people are embarrassed – they never thought they’d be in a position to need a hamper – but they’re grateful we’re able to support them through the project. We’ve had some lovely, heart-warming comments which shows how appreciative and thankful people are.

“We also give hampers to local women who have been victims of domestic violence, reaching out to them to say how loved they are and that someone cares about them.

“In another example, I remember one family who told us they’d had a really difficult year with multiple challenges. They have three disabled kids and were totally blown away and thankful to be receiving the hamper – they couldn’t believe there was someone out there who cared for them.

“I also remember delivering to an old gentleman who opened the door and said, ‘It’s so good to see you. I’ve had a really bad day.’ I had a cup of tea and a biscuit with him, and he appreciated the friendship.”

With Christian-themed Christmas cards, invitations to Rediscover’s services and Alpha’s White Christmas booklet included in the hampers, Jason and the team hope the deliveries help make faith connections too.

“The hampers are important, but even after the food has been eaten, the impact on people’s lives lasts beyond Christmas. When the New Year begins, we’ve also seen people re-engage with church or perhaps enter a church building for the first time.”

In some cases, they have been able to pray with people on their doorsteps as the deliveries have been made.

As the team ready themselves to deliver hundreds more hampers this month, they are praying for further opportunities to bless local families and build connections.

“At Christmas, it’s so important to share about Jesus, to help people and to have great conversations about church. We’re able to do this in a practical way through the Hamper Project,” says Jason.

“We’re so passionate about sharing the love of God and reaching out to people in need during the festive season.”

This article first appeared in the December 2022 edition of Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.

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