Society of St James homeless charity commends Portsmouth's Comfort and Joy Campaign this Christmas

The Comfort and Joy Campaign, established 20 years ago, was set up to raise money for charities across the Portsmouth area to ensure that people who are struggling during the festive period are given something that can boost their spirits.

Each year, the festive appeal asks people to donate a Christmas card with a special greeting inside or a gift voucher to the value of £5. The donations are then collected and distributed fairly to the charities that are involved in the campaign, where they are then given to vulnerable people that need a bit of extra support.

The Rev Canon Bob White said: ‘Those who are in the margins and homeless are not just a statistic, or a nuisance, or a ‘them’; but they are human beings like us and in each of them Christians believe we see the image of God.’

One of the invaluable charities in the city that is involved in the appeal is the Society of St James which dedicates itself to helping people who are experiencing homelessness and try to get them back on the right tracks.

The charity offers a number of services including drug and alcohol addiction recovery, accommodation for periods of time, general support and well-being and a sports therapy programme for people trying to over come substance abuse.

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Society of St James operations director Mike Taylor said: ‘We are so grateful yet again to be beneficiaries of the Portsmouth Comfort and Joy campaign because we know it means so much to the vulnerable adults we work with.

‘SSJ has been supporting people affected by homelessness for 50 years and every year we raise money to provide a hot meal or gift to people in our services at a time when they can feel alone. The Comfort and Joy campaign really helps with this.‘Christmas can be a lonely time for people affected by homelessness and we do all we can to raise their spirits and provide them with a hot meal or gift, creating positive memories that help them realise that homelessness doesn’t have to be their past, present and future.’

The Comfort and Joy Campaign has set a target this year to mark their 20th anniversary, and they are determined to raise £20,000 in donations from the generous people of Portsmouth.

Over the past 19 years, the appeal has raised over £180,000, and if the target is reached, it will tip the total over £200,000.

The campaign seeks to offer vulnerable people the ability to have a choice as many people who are receiving help from the charities involved have gone through trauma that has seen their choice taken away. Mike added: ‘Our experience in supporting people affected by homelessness tells us every day that a service user enjoys good experiences and kindness, it goes a long way to transforming their lives.‘The cost of living Crisis is going to deeply affect our service users and we want to make sure they can enjoy Christmas without the added worries they are facing in the current climate.’