You changed Christmas for Renee and her boys...

With Christmas just a few weeks away, Renee found herself in a position she never thought she would be in—a single mother and sole provider for her two boys, Jai and Jet. When she split from her husband in December, Renee’s financial situation was seriously compromised.

“It was a tough time. I’ve been in tough situations before and I don’t normally ask for help. I was just going to try and get by,” says Renee. But as a devoted mother, it broke Renee’s heart that she wouldn’t be able to provide a Christmas for her boys.

Renee is used to helping others, not asking for help. She is a regular volunteer in her community and over the last three years has built a flourishing online mother’s group community totalling more than 9,000 mums, where she often refers people to the local Salvos centre if they are experiencing hardship.

Knowing Renee was going through a hard time, Sarah from The Salvation Army approached her. “Sarah pulled me into the room where they had presents set up like a shop and she said, ‘I want you to choose presents for you and your kids,’” says Renee.

“I went into the room and straight away saw the Transformer toy that Jai had been wanting for ages. I couldn’t justify spending the money when we just didn’t have it spare. I looked at that toy and everything else and I was so overwhelmed. I just cried, standing there in that room.”

For Renee, it was that moment she realised that she wasn’t on her own at Christmas.

“Before that, I felt like I had to deal with it and solve it all myself. But I realised there were actually people out there looking out for and caring for me and the boys.”

Those people are you—our faithful and loyal supporters.

Your support enabled Renee and her boys to have a Christmas.