The end of the year celebrations are an opportunity to get together with family, around a good meal and gifts. But for homeless people, Christmas often means loneliness. In Caen, the Catholic faith association Notre-Dame Mère de Lumière, and its branch SOS Sans Abris Caen, organized Sunday, December 26 a Christmas meal for homeless people, rue de la Misericorde, near the port of Caen.

In the room, the tables are full of petits fours, flowers and chocolates, the plates are full : “Frankly, it’s heartwarming, it’s moving and it’s great to see it all done for us“, says Rudy, who has lived in Caen for 3 years.”I have a family, but I don’t talk to them anymore, so I prefer spending Christmas here a thousand times, with the people of the street, it’s much warmer“, says Mandy.

A distribution of gifts, given by individuals

The association’s twenty volunteers are active in serving the beneficiaries at the table. Under the big tree, nearly 150 gift boxes are stored. “In October, we appealed for donations from individuals, they could put hygiene products, warm clothes, chocolates in a shoebox.“, Explain Marthe Garitan, head of the homeless pole of the association. “And it worked very well, we saw boxes arriving every day at our premises, it’s really great such solidarity!“

Last year, this indoor Christmas meal had to be canceled due to covid. So the volunteers of the association are delighted to be able to welcome its beneficiaries again. “For us, Christmas is a time of sharing, celebration, fraternity, smiles Alberto Maalouf, the president of the association, this is why we wanted to organize this event for these people whom we have been following for many years already, we want to treat them like queens and kings today and bring them a little comfort. “

In all, nearly 120 beneficiaries were welcomed and fed for this Christmas meal.