Press Release

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Harvest Festival that lasts all year round

For most people a harvest festival – whether in church or school - is simply a brief opportunity to be thankful for the food we enjoy. For the residents of Emmaus House in Aldershot, however, the festival is celebrated for a full twelve months.

Each year Emmaus House - which provides emergency and first-level accommodation for homeless young people – gratefully accepts the proceeds from a number harvest festival collections from schools and churches in the area. Many hundreds of tins and packets of non-perishable food are gathered and carefully stored, and then used to provide the basic ingredients for meals for the residents throughout the coming year.

“We rely on the generosity of our donors to help keep our food costs down,” says Hayley Hewitt-Dutton, Step by Step's Project Co-ordinator for Emmaus House. “We can concentrate our resources on buying fresh food to supplement the goods in our store, and so provide a balanced diet for our clients. We are really indebted to everyone who contributes something towards these harvest festivals.”

So far this year, Step by Step has received food donations from a number of schools, including All Hallows RC Secondary School; All Saints Juniors, Fleet; Farnborough Hill; Velmead, Fleet; and Talavera, Aldershot. Churches that have contributed include Aldershot Methodist; Ashvale Methodist; St Augustine's, Aldershot; St Barbara’s, Deepcut; Christ Church, Crookham; Cove Parish; Fleet Baptist; Church of the Good Shepherd; Heatherside, Camberley; Holy Trinity & All Saints, Hawley; St Joseph's, Aldershot; St Mark's, Bordon; Our Lady, Fleet; Our Lady Queen of Heaven, Frimley; St Paul's, Tongham; St Peters, Ash; St Peter's & St Francis', Frimley; St Peter’s, Farnborough; and St Swithun's, Yateley. In addition, gifts have been received from several private donors.

However, despite the generosity of its supporters, Step by Step still welcomes further donations throughout the year to help purchase fresh food for its clients.

©2008 Step by Step Partnership Ltd   :   Reg. Charity No. 900308    :   Company No. 2431825