Toy drives: The magic of helping others have a merry Christmas

The Digg Deep campaign, which was started by Caroline O’Neill, is in its fifth year

It is the season of giving and people across Northern Ireland have been helping others experience the magic of Christmas through this very act.

The cost of living has forced many people into hardship and two mums have made it their mission to spread some joy over the festive period.

Caroline O'Neill, from Coalisland, County Tyrone, has raised £190,000 through her Digg Deep For Kids campaign for gifts and essentials, such as heat.

"It's been magic," the mother of three told BBC News NI.

"The power of people and community is what shines throughout this whole campaign and you really do see the best of people."

Caroline organised a toy drive where people dropped off presents at 75 locations across Northern Ireland and her team worked with businesses to maximise financial donations, to be used for charities.

"We've been able to put WiFi in the homeless shelter in Armagh so people can learn and access services and put defibrillators in the shelters," she said.

"There were empty bays [for toys] at the Cash For Kids warehouse for nine to 18-year-olds and we were able to fulfil everything they asked for in relation to the teenagers and then St Vincent de Paul asked us to focus on fuel to heat up people's homes so that's what we did.

"Whereas the Simon Community needed help with mattresses and bedding and things to help rehouse people who are homeless."

Caroline said people from across Northern Ireland volunteered to sort toys

Caroline says she has been "blown away" by the support of strangers, friends and families.

"The reaction I get from everyone I speak to is: 'What can I do to help?'" she said.

"These are people who often don't have loads but perhaps they have enough and they want to help others have enough, to feel content and secure.

"I'll feel very emotional on Christmas morning because I look at my own kids and I think, 'oh my goodness, there are people that are warm because of us, they're getting a present and perhaps they are safer than they were before and we helped to do that'."

'So inspiring'

Sleep deprived after a difficult night with her new baby, Fiona Cole, from south Belfast, decided to do a pre-Christmas clear out of her oldest son John's toys.

"It made me think about how many are doing the exact same thing where we are trying to get rid of perfectly good items just because our children have stopped playing with them or grown out of them," she told BBC News NI.

"Because I'd worked with Joy Poots (from Sure Start) before, I called her up and said I had this idea that we would get next to new, pre-loved, items that you wouldn't mind having for your own child and we would check the batteries and wrap them up and Sure Start families could discreetly give them to families.

"It just blew up."

Fiona's house was "covered" in donated pre-loved toys

Fiona's campaign helped 50 families in south Belfast as well as excess presents being left for stocking fillers and smaller gifts.

She reckons she could have got two or three times the amount of gifts, if she had had the space to store them.

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"We got a basically brand new bike that had been with grandparents and the child didn't take to it then grew out of it," said Fiona, who is on maternity leave from her job at Barnardo's.

"There was a woman who had been saving for months to get two new bikes for her two kids, but she could only afford one. She didn't know how she was going to tell the younger one that she hadn't got the second bike.

"The toy drive meant she didn't have to choose which child didn't get a bike for Christmas."

But Fiona says "it wasn't all about the big ticket Christmas item".

"A lot of people feel the pressure trying to afford to give smaller gifts, like their schoolkid's friend or a niece or nephew, and we tried to take the stress out of that as best we could," she said.

"It's been a really tough year for so many people and I've seen, through my work, how Stormont cuts have affected people in real life so the fact that so many people wanted to help us was just so inspiring.

"People gave up their time and showed us that Christmas isn't commercial, it's about coming together, building community and spreading joy to children, regardless of your circumstances.

"When you strip it all back, that's all that matters."