Jumble Sales Raises £1500 to Help Ukrainians This Christmas

The MotherSisterDaughter Jumble Sale at Trinity Hall on Saturday raised just short of £1500 to help support Ukrainians living in Henley and the surrounding villages.

This amount was not far below the Jumble Sale in May which raised £1600 and paid for a summer trip to the seaside for the Ukrainian families to enjoy. Organiser Gemma Birch said, “The amount raised is amazing as it wasn’t as busy as the last one despite having just under 100 people through the door! We put that down to the glorious weather on Saturday – but those that came spent more.”

As well as clothes there was a huge toy, book and bric and brac stalls along with a tombola.

Many volunteers and people’s donations made the Jumble Sale such a success.  Gemma added, “We had some amazing donations and incredible support for the local community as always. It simply would not have been possible without our fabulous team of dedicated volunteers from those who help out regularly and worked tirelessly to pull all the donations together and make the jumble happen, through to those who give up their time on the day to help set up or man the stalls.”

Gemma and the MSD team are still deciding how best to spend the funds that have been raised from the Jumble Sale but are looking at something for Christmas.  Gemma commented, “We are considering food hampers to bolster the winter bills as the season starts to change and possibly a Christmas event as these allow out families to create lovely memories together and help the children share some special moments with their families. Our trip the Boscombe Pier in the summer was a fabulous success and it was so lovely to see the children having carefree time on the beach and to see our lovely families relaxing and laughing together. That was possible due to the last Jumble sale we had, so every penny raised from these events, is helping drive positive progress for our families on so many levels.”

Feedback from the visitors to the event have also been “overwhelming” said Gemma.  “There is a huge focus on the jumble clothes and there are lots of local people trying to clothe themselves and their children whilst having to work to tighter budgets than they may have had previously. Some local people are priced out of the charity shops in Henley and so being able to offer items of clothing at 50p has become incredibly important.”

The green element of a Jumble Sale is key for Gemma.  She added, “The amount of ‘stuff’ that we are able to help recycle and give new life to that would otherwise end up in landfill is a significant focus for us as well. Equally we can then pass on what we don’t sell to our local charities who have a wider, different audience to sell to compared to us. It’s such a win-win event on so many levels.”