Landmarks right across the north will be lit in green this Thursday to mark the Winter Solstice, the longest night of the year.
The initiative from the Samaritans is intended to give an opportunity to reflect and to remind everyone that the charity is on hand for anyone who may be struggling.
Christmas may be a time for festive cheer, but it can also be a particularly hard time especially as the cost of living continues to bite, leaving many people facing difficult decisions to cope with their ever-stretched finances.
Last year Samaritans volunteers in Northern Ireland answered nearly 10,000 calls over the Christmas period with the average length of a call on Christmas Day being 25 minutes.
Those calls, which Samaritans believe will rise this year, were from people struggling to cope with mental health, relationship issues, financial problems or feelings of loneliness and isolation.
Marcella Taylor, regional director for Samaritans in Northern Ireland, said: “Last year nearly 100 volunteers in Northern Ireland gave up time with their families and friends on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day to be there for people who needed someone to listen. This year especially, we want to remind everyone that volunteers across all eight branches will be available 24/7 over the Christmas period.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those landmarks across Northern Ireland for lighting up for our Longest Night campaign and to say a huge thankyou to all our volunteers who will be taking time out to be on duty over the festive period.”
Explaining what it means to volunteer on Christmas Day, Samaritan volunteer Linda said: “I have always volunteered on Christmas Day since joining Samaritans. From personal experience I know that events such as Christmas, anniversaries and birthdays can be the most difficult times so I feel these are the most important times to be available for our callers.
“Samaritans provide an emotional support system for a variety of callers over the Christmas period. This can be an extremely lonely time for people who are on their own, those who have lost someone close to them or are coping with an illness.
“This time of year is often seen as a time of joy; however, the problems and challenges that people are facing don’t go away just because it’s Christmas. Some people just need to know that there is someone there on the other end of the phone to speak to”, she added.
- The Samaritans ‘Longest Night’ campaign will take place on December 21. samaritans.org
