At the Capuchin Day Centre on Bow Street in Dublin on Wednesday, a line of people began queuing just after 2am. They had received tickets last week that would entitle them to a €50 food voucher for Dunnes Stores.
Margaret (68) said the reason she needed help was “the cost of everything”.
“I can’t keep up with the cost of everything. It’s too much. It’s all just too much.”
Standing off to the side after collecting their vouchers, two men who know each other are reconnected. “Did you get your voucher?” one asked.
“By God, I did. Sure I wouldn’t have had a Christmas without it. Thanks be to God. Thanks be to God,” the other replied.
Alan Bailey has been involved with the Capuchin Centre for 50 years but said that this year demand is at record levels, with 3,000 people being given vouchers.
Standing at the door of the centre handing out the vouchers from 7.30 on Wednesday morning, he is faced with thousands of people eagerly seeking support. “Give us a chance. Give us a chance.”
“We used to give out food parcels but we had to stop it because of Covid. We went to vouchers then. That’s better. You’ve people travelling from all over the country on buses and everything,” he said.
“The people are all ages and from all walks of life. We have people who have homes and houses but this time of year the pressures and problems become so much that they come here for a little bit of extra help. I’m 50 years involved and I’ve never seen it as busy. I’d say that people are just hitting hard times. A lot of pressure around Christmas.”
Just after 8am, one woman had two tickets in her hands and sought two vouchers. “It’s one per person,” she was told. “But please, it would really help,” she said. Bailey replied: “I’m sorry, it’s one per person.”
The queue for the vouchers moved rapidly throughout the morning, though the length never seemed to shorten. There were older men and women using walking sticks or walkers; disabled people using walking aids; families, with children in buggies; schoolchildren in their uniforms; babies sucking on soothers.
One young boy wearing a navy uniform turned to his mother: “Can we go yet?”
“We just need to get the voucher first. Then we can buy chocolate spread later,” she replied. He smiled and jumped in response.
Mr Bailey said they see “lots of children” throughout the year.
“Every Monday morning, we have to 200 to 300 families looking for nappies and baby food. Normally on a Wednesday morning we give out food parcels. Last February, that number was at 900. We’re now at 1,450. We’re doing 300 breakfasts and 700 dinners everyday.”
A man, who did not want to be named, said he really needed a voucher for Christmas. “It’s the cost of living. Living is so expensive. It’s just a really tough time of year.”
The Dublin man grew up in the flats in the inner city. A recovering addict who has been sober for 14 years, he said the demand for food vouchers is a symptom of a wider problem – pointing out the need to increase services for homeless people and those in active addiction.
“It’s like it’s going backwards instead of forward. There should be more done to help people,” he added.
A Dublin woman wrapped tightly in several layers to protect herself from the cold said things are “very expensive”. She queued up to get a voucher because “I need help. It is hard to admit that”.
“I only got one this year, last year and the year before. That’s when things started to get very difficult. There would be weeks when things would be fine, but then the next week I’d need to get a Wednesday bag [of food],” she said.
“It’s tough. This year is the toughest it’s ever been. Everything is gone up. Absolutely everything.”
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