Farmers provide Christmas cheer

Staff Reporter THE farmers association Asaja acted as Father Christmas on Wednesday, delivering food parcels to the shelters for the homeless and disadvantaged. President Gabriel Company said that the food had been collected from local farms and fishing boats associated with the organisation. This charitable donation is carried out from time to time, particularly at Christmas and Easter, by the agricultural and farming group who want to see society's most needy groups enjoying good quality produce that the islands have to offer. The leader of the agrarian organisation, together with other members of the board of directors, supervised the delivery of the food. Products included fruit, vegetables, garden produce, sugar, meat, flour, coffee, suckling pigs and fish. One of the centres which benefited was Can Gaza, where Jaume Santandreu, who runs several shelters for the disadvantaged, gave thanks to Asaja for its generosity. Can Gaza currently has 50 residents, who have no means of support. The number of occupants is far above the capacity of the centre, which is in Establiments, and Santandreu has approached the government to provide better facilities. Many of the people at the centre are terminally ill, and they run it themselves, with the aid of monitors. Another shelter founded by Santandreu, El Refugi, which provides accommodation mainly for drug addicts, is also short of space. The government is reported to be studying the possibility of improving facilities.