IN a year defined by stopping the spread, Christmas cheer was moving quickly in the Hunter on Sunday.
Founder and chief executive of Southlake Marketplace foodbank, Christine Mastello, said 1190 people living between Bolton Point and Wyong had registered to pick up 690 food hampers and 500 toys. Half were collected at Cooranbong on Sunday.
The other half will be collected at Lake Munmorah on Thursday.
"We were supposed to start at 10am and people started turning up at nine-o-clock," Ms Mastello said.
"We told them to come back at 10, so they filled the entire road, up and down, both sides.
"Then when they started coming they blocked Freemans Drive off by trying to all turn in at once.
"It was 150 cars in ten minutes, so we had to change our plans really quickly."
She said her organisation also gave away 400 frozen meals on Sunday. Ms Mastello said Avondale College Church paid for and packed the hampers, which each had $58 of food.
She received donations of money to buy toys and also received donated toys.
One man also repaired and donated 100 pushbikes and scooters.
Ms Mastello said it was the busiest Christmas her organisation had seen since it started in 2013.
It usually gives away 300 hampers and around 280 toys.
She said on top of the regulars, 70 per cent had lost their jobs and the rest had been affected by domestic violence.
"We have a lot of people who are living in caravan parks, people's garages, in the back of their cars in the back of houses," she said.
"They said they didn't really understand what people on Centrelink went through before, so this has opened their eyes to that.
"They also talked about the loss of dignity and how they feel. You've got a job and can provide for your family, you have a certain level of respect for yourself.
"A lot of people tie their wealth to their stature so this has been a rude awakening and especially people with children, it's really broken a lot of mum and dads not being able to provide the way they're used to providing each year.
"But we had the other side of it which been amazing - a lot of mums and dads have brought their kids down to volunteer with us... because they've never realised what it was like before."
Ms Mastello paid tribute to her volunteers, saying they helped transform the organisation into a meal and groceries delivery service for 13 weeks during lockdown.
She grew up in a family that volunteered.
"If you look after your community then your community looks after you and it's a better community."
Meanwhile all 120 trees from the Civic Park Christmas tree maze were picked up in two hours on Sunday, in exchange for a donation to the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal. The initiative raised just under $4000.
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