Christmas is supposed to be a time of Joy, but for many families doing it tough it can be one of the most challenging times of the year. With households feeling the pinch of rising costs of living pressures, the adding stress of gifts, travel, and food can make the festive season a struggle. Many families are turning to charities for help, some, for the very first time.
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00:00For mother of three, Sarah Bullock, Christmas has always been a special time.
00:08We grew up with Christmas being a really big deal.
00:10But with rising mortgage repayments and three hungry mouths to feed, the festive season
00:16comes at a big cost.
00:18Especially considering I am on mat leave, we are only on one income at the moment.
00:23Like so many families, Sarah says their household budget is being stretched to the limit.
00:29We've got a budget for our food and I just noticed each fortnight that we were getting
00:34less and less for the same budget.
00:36This year, Sarah and her husband are opting for second-hand gifts for their little ones.
00:41You're essentially buying a really good quality, almost new item for a fraction of the price.
00:48My children love books, so I got them from like 50 cents to $2 each, which is great.
00:54And yeah, a few items of clothing, some new swimwear.
00:58For a growing number of households in the NT, affording the basics is a challenge.
01:04This year, requests for Vinnie's emergency relief payments are up 25 per cent.
01:09We've gone over $300,000 worth of grants that we've given out to families in need.
01:15Nearly 40 per cent of Territorians experienced food insecurity in the last 12 months, Food
01:22Bank reporting a 34 per cent surge in demand.
01:26We're in a cost of living crisis.
01:28There's no way, you can't gloss over it.
01:30It's people who are working on low wages, they've got families and they just cannot
01:35put food on the table, they cannot provide the gifts for the families at Christmas time.
01:40To take pressure off struggling families, this Christmas volunteers pitching in their
01:44time for Vinnie's annual hamper drive.
01:48We use Vinnie's sometimes and yeah, we just do it in the holidays.
01:53We did it last year and this year.
01:55I was lucky enough when my children were little that I could give them the world, so I'd like
02:01to give back.
02:02450 households right across the Northern Territory are going to be receiving one of these carefully
02:08packed hampers this Christmas, including people from the Tiwi Islands, Catherine and Emu Point.
02:15We've asked people, what did you think about the tampers?
02:19It just made my day.
02:20It made a huge difference to me.
02:22I was able to feed the family and I was able to be stress free for a day.
02:27As the saying goes, maybe Christmas doesn't come from a store, maybe, perhaps, it means
02:33a little bit more.