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Anglicare Christmas Connection is a partnership that combines practical financial giving with personal, prayerful encouragement. It involves:

• Choosing a gift of practical help: Every gift funds the vital, professional services provided to our communities by Anglicare’s Financial Wellbeing (FinWell), Foster Care, and Chaplaincy teams.
• Writing a message of encouragement: You can remind someone doing it tough that they aren’t alone, that a wider church community is praying for them. Anglicare teams will hand-deliver your Connection Cards during face-to-face moments of care throughout the year.

You can participate either online or through a display at your local church, school, or workplace:

• Choose a card: Select a card representing a vital Anglicare service, such as low-cost groceries, financial counselling, or community chaplaincy.
• Scan to donate: Scan the secure QR code on the back of the card to make your donation online.
• Write your message: Tear off the lined Connection Card panel from the card and handwrite a message of encouragement (or write a digital message if giving online).
• Post it: Drop the Connection Card into the foyer Message Mailbox. You can keep the front cover of the card as a reminder to pray for our neighbours or give it.

Yes, absolutely. If you cannot access a physical display, you can visit our website to select a gift, make a secure donation, and type a digital message of encouragement. Your message will appear on our digital message wall. 

If you prefer not to use digital QR codes or give online, you can make a physical donation using the secure giving envelopes at your church's writing table:

1. Fill out the form: Complete your details on the physical giving slip inside the envelope (including cash, cheque, or credit card options).
2. Seal your envelope: Place your donation inside and seal it.
3. Post your card and envelope: Drop the sealed envelope into the Message Mailbox alongside your handwritten Connection Card. Your Anglicare Ambassador will ensure it is returned to Anglicare safely.

If you can’t get to a physical display to access a giving envelope, please call us on 1300 111 278.

Your donation goes directly to funding Anglicare’s essential Community and Mission programs. This includes our Financial Wellbeing (FinWell) services, low-cost community grocery pantries, emergency housing support, foster care teams, and pastoral chaplaincy in social housing estates, hospitals, and prisons.

Donations are pooled so that Anglicare can deliver the greatest possible impact at scale.

Rather than paying retail prices for individual products, Anglicare leverages bulk wholesale purchasing power to secure food pantry staples, crisis supplies, and initiative resources at a fraction of the cost. This ensures your generosity goes as far as possible, bringing practical comfort and genuine hope to families who need it most.

Yes, all donations of $2 and over to Anglicare’s community services are fully tax-deductible. If you donate online, your tax receipt will be emailed to you instantly. Offline giving slips are processed at our office, and receipts are sent out once processing is complete.

The goal is to share a warm, relational message of encouragement. To keep messages helpful and respectful:

• Avoid platitudes: Skip oversimplified clichés like "Just smile, it could be worse!" and write honest, prayerful encouragement instead.
• Protect privacy: Sign off with your first name and suburb only (e.g., "With prayers, Sarah from Croydon"). Do not write surnames, home addresses, phone numbers, or specific church group names.
• Make it gender-neutral: This ensures our frontline caseworkers and chaplains can hand your card to whoever needs that exact encouragement most.

For writing prompts and inspiration, you can view our complete Connection Card Writing Guide on our Resources Page.

Yes, absolutely. Sharing a simple prayer or a message of encouragement is a vital gift of grace. We want everyone, including children, youth, and those unable to give financially, to participate. You can find extra blank Connection Cards at your church's writing table or print them from our Resources Page to drop into the Message Mailbox.

Once completed Connection Cards are returned to Anglicare, we will carefully sort and vet them to ensure they are safe and encouraging. From there, your physical cards are distributed to our frontline caseworkers, community pantry volunteers, financial counsellors, and chaplains, who will hand-deliver them directly to clients during face-to-face visits and moments of care throughout the year.

We have finished running Toys 'n' Tucker and we have transitioned to Anglicare Christmas Connection. This new initiative builds on everything congregations and communities loved about Toys 'n' Tucker, but delivers it in a sustainable, year-round way that assists families with deeper, long-term dignity. 

While physical toy and hamper collections were a beautiful tradition, material aid is only one part of meeting people’s needs. Hardship and isolation persist long after December. By transitioning to Christmas Connection, we can stretch your financial gifts further through bulk wholesale purchasing power, we can empower families to choose what they actually need at our community pantries, and pair immediate festive relief with professional, year-round services.

You may consider purchasing a Christmas Hamper, Stock the Community Pantry or Christmas Lunch Gift Card. 

Please note: While we are no longer collecting or distributing physical toys (and will redirect toy-focused enquiries to other local charities), churches and communities are still very welcome to run local food collections at other times throughout the year.