IHC Christmas Party

Every year the IHC membership throws a Christmas Party for volunteers and it is always a fun time with good food and better company. It was a bit odd this year in that we found ourselves in exactly the same place we were a year ago – without a place to call home and no idea if this might be our last party together. Hopefully not, but it is hard to stay optimistic about our future when in a 12 month period we found a warehouse, got moved in, started replacing supplies lost in the fire and then finally had enough to fill our first container, this time to a few months later were loading our first container in months, then our second a month later. A slow down over the summer months and then back into the swing and then we found out we were losing our space and that there were no spaces we could move to. Some of our original volunteers were more pragmatic, saying that if this was/is the end then we had a good run – 18 years in our original location was almost more than anyone could ask for! Hard to disagree, but still … Given the dedication of our volunteers and the importance of the work we do for communities-in-need and for our environment, it is hard to throw in the towel. And if not us, then who? Like last year, coffee mornings are being planned so volunteers can stay in touch and soon we will all be together again at our AGM. Maybe this spring will be like last spring and we will find ourselves on the move to a new warehouse space, but only time will tell. We are keeping our fingers crossed!