Bobby's Big Heart
Christmas preparations have already started for a couple who run a charity for people in need.
Kevin Crabb and his wife Yolanda send out hundreds of Christmas presents to families who are struggling financially.
They set up their charity Bobby’s Big Heart after being inspired by their son Bobby, who is autistic.
Kevin is a senior support worker and safeguarding lead at the Poplar Adolescent Unit, one of our mental health inpatient wards for young people.
He said: “Bobby's Big Heart started five years ago after my son Bobby could not understand why Santa was not able to give out toys to all children.
“Our aim was to help struggling families with Christmas presents for their children.
“I started up a Facebook page asking people if they would mind donating a toy for a child, which our local newspaper reported on, and within three weeks we had 2,000 members and a steady flow of donations, including toys, sweets, and selection packs.”
They helped more than 150 families during that first Christmas and decided to set up a food bank for people in need to use all year round.
They spent 18 months contacting local businesses and organisations to gain support and many now regularly donate gifts and money. Morrisons supermarket in Canvey donates food every week for the food bank.
Bobby’s Big Heart also collects clothes and presents for charities and community organisations supporting homeless and elderly people, and sends out Easter eggs as well as Christmas presents to families who are struggling financially.
More than 4,000 members have joined the charity’s Facebook page and regularly donate food and new toys at Christmas.
Kevin and Yolanda, who previously worked at the Trust as a senior support worker, run the registered charity from their home in Canvey with support from a small admin team.
Kevin, who has worked at EPUT for 30 years, said: “We’ve helped more than 2,500 people from across Essex and everyone from every walk of life.
“We work closely with domestic abuse teams, mental health teams, social care and social workers. “We also have a lot of people who work at EPUT who point people in our direction.
“It’s getting busier and busier. Food parcels are going out quicker than the food is coming in.
“We send out lots of food parcels daily. At the moment with so many hard-working families facing financial difficulties, we are extremely busy and struggle to keep up the demand.
“Our aim is to create smiles and take away the pressure.
“Christmas is a big deal for Bobby's Big Heart. From early September until Christmas Eve, we spend countless hours sorting out donations, wrapping and labelling gifts, then delivering them to families.
“We help out all over Essex and our admin team work tirelessly to organise events to raise money to help us continue to help others.”
Their next project is to open a community support hub where people can go in for tea or coffee and speak to therapists, nurses and advisors.
Search for Bobby’s Big Heart on Facebook to find out more about the charity’s work.