By Eleanor Wilson
Donna Weightman is hoping an act of generosity will be the saviour of loneliness this Christmas.
The Narre Warren South resident is opening the doors to her home for Christmas lunch on 25 December, welcoming anyone in the community who would otherwise spend the festive holiday alone.
“We don’t have much ourselves but there’s always a lot of people who are worse off,” she said.
Donna has been posting on local community Facebook groups offering “a welcoming home to come to share the love; eat, relax, enjoy and be supportive” on Christmas Day, no religion involved.
“All I want is for people to have a laugh, enjoy the spirit of Christmas and to let them know that there are still good people in the world, even though we don’t hear about them much.
“We’ll have the barbecue on with sausages, chicken on a spit, chicken wings in the oven, lots of salads, lollies and some food platters.”
So far, in addition to Donna, her husband, daughter and father, around 10 individuals have expressed interest in joining the family for the yuletide celebrations.
“The response has been incredible…I’ve had so many private messages about people offering to supply food and cakes and drinks,” she said.
“Some people have offered some toys to gift to the children that are coming.”
Langwarrin South’s Dee Samuel reached out to Donna to offer her cake-making service for the day.
The mother of four started her small business ‘Cupcake Bouquet’ several months ago, crafting botanically realistic arrangements made from cake and frosting.
She will supply a 30-cupcake bouquet and some small cupcakes for the 25 December affair.
“I know the value of getting people together and a lot of the time we don’t do it because it’s too hard, so when I saw Donna was doing this…I just think it takes an exceptional person to do something like that,” Ms Samuel said.
“I think it’s incredible for her to open up her home and basically say, ‘I don’t know who you are, I trust you’re a good person, come to my home and enjoy a meal’. I think that’s a pretty big deal.”
Aside from an opportunity to bring people together, the lunch is a chance for the family to “kiss goodbye to 2022”.
“This year has brought a lot of hard times for a lot of people,” she said.
“I lost my brother five months ago and it will be our first Christmas without him and I’ve had some of my own health issues so we want to farewell 2022 and welcome the new year.
“I don’t want anybody to go without this Christmas…we’re already going without one person, so if we can spread a bit of cheer it’ll make us happy as well.”
If you would like to contact Donna about her Christmas Day lunch, you can do so on 0403 972 070.
