A corner of Delacombe was bursting with festive spirit as hundreds of local residents gathered for carols and a free Christmas dinner.
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The annual event, at the Delacombe branch of the Salvation Army, was held in glorious summer sunshine. A brass band belted out a series of festive favourites for the event's "Carols in a Car Park".
Once the singing was over, Santa Claus was then on hand to distribute presents to a long line of children. Then people carried their chairs from beneath the gazebo into the church hall for a traditional turkey dinner.
It is the first overseen by Captain Craig Farrell, who is in his first year in the job at Delacombe alongside his wife Ellen. Both had spoken earlier in the week as the preparations get under way.
The Courier visited just as the carols were coming to an end, and the volunteers in the kitchen were preparing for the diners to come in.
There were long, festively decorated tables almost filling the entire hall, with enough places set for 300 people at an event designed to bring a community together.
I lose a lot of sleep over it, but I love it - it always works out
- Pauline Barry, Salvation Army volunteer
As the strains of Jingle Bells drifted through the building, Pauline Barry was co-ordinating all the activity in the kitchen. A veteran of eight previous Salvation Army Christmas dinners, she was beaming broadly, and seemed unperturbed at the prospect of almost 200 people about to arrive for lunch.
Exchanging quips with the rest of the staff, with vegetables piled high on the counter ready to be dished out, she said: "I lose a lot of sleep over it, but I love it - it always works out."
She said that any leftover meals would be packaged up and distributed to families who might not have been able to make it. Otherwise, it would go to the Soup Bus so there was as little waste as possible.
Cindy Judd had come for both the carols and the dinner with her five children, Henry, Charlotte, Sophie, Arthur and Gabrielle, as well as their friend Gypsy.
Ms Judd said she loved coming to the event each year.
"It's fun and exciting for the kids," she said. "It's also good for the community, we've seen lots of different people from the area here, including teachers. It's a family day out."
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