By Andy Dalton
Thousands of Christmas seasonal gift tags are being given away in West Leeds during the next four weeks.
Anyone who would like a quantity of tags to use with their Christmas presents are being invited to call in and collect them from the Leeds City Mission Compassion Centre in Mistress Lane, Armley.
Since January volunteers from the City Mission Centre have collected and recycled a total of 3,854 greetings cards. Many of these cards were donated by readers of the West Leeds Dispatch responding to an appeal via its columns early in the new year. The willing card-crafters have cut out an incredible total of 7,978 greetings tags.
The City Mission is now busy making them available to the general public, voluntary organisations, churches and any individual who can use either a large or small quantity.
One 90-year-old pensioner who is housebound due to immobility issues has been one of the lead volunteers.
Boxes of donated used cards have been delivered to her home over the last eleven months. While she cannot walk – her hands are still very active. Using her crimping scissors she has spent scores of hours cutting out and crafting the greetings tags.
She said that it had given her a sense of value being able to do something with purpose as she sought to support the vital work of Leeds City Mission.
Development Worker Andy Dalton said that the City Mission had been staggered at the number of donated cards received.
They were even more surprised that nearly 8,000 tags had been produced and that these could now be put to good use. He especially invited any organisation holding a Christmas Fayre to come and take a quantity to use for their good cause.
He said that everyone found it very satisfying that something useful had been created from waste. He concluded: “this has been a first class recycling project”.
The City Mission is also running a Pop-Up Christmas Charity Shop in the run up to Christmas Day.
It has a variety of festive items which will make excellent Christmas presents. All monies generated will go towards the different projects run by the City Mission. Leeds City Mission is one of the oldest charities in the city being in continuous existence since 1837.
It works with marginalized people and those struggling with life. It is a multi-church agency and located to its present premises in Mistress Lane (end of Town Street) in Armley in 2021.
The Christmas seasonal gift tags are free.
The City Mission Compassion Centre is open Mondays to Fridays (not Wednesdays) 10am to 3pm and every Saturday morning 10am to 1pm until Christmas. Telephone 0113 345 3118 or e-mail lcm1837@gmail.com.