Happy Boxing Day!

It's still Christmas (sort of) so here are seven seasonal stories of snow and goodwill for you to enjoy while you're putting off cleaning up.

Christmas snow

It may not have been a white Christmas this year but there have been years where we've had some snow around the festive season in Dorset.

Here's a snowy South Street in Dorchester in 2010, complete with Christmas tree:

 

Here's some Christmas shoppers in Bridport the same year:

 

And here's a lonely postman delivering Christmas cards in the snow:

 

Christmas fundraisers

Singers, dancers, donkeys and Santa gathered on the Pelican tall ship in 2014 to film the charity song ‘Christmas in the Sun’ for BBC Children in Need 2014.

Ysanne Carniss-Usherwood decided to bring the community together to raise money for the charity by releasing a Christmas song and video, filmed in Weymouth.

 

The spirit of giving

Youngster Rian Harvey battled leukaemia - but he was determined to give something back to the ward where he was treated. Here he is in 2014 with Help a Friend handing over Christmas hampers to Sally Burnham (left) on Kingfisher Ward at Dorset County Hospital.

 

Remembering lost loved ones

Weldmar is a cause close to the hearts of many people in Dorset. As well as caring for those facing terminal conditions and their families, they allow us to take time to remember those we have lost by holding Light up a Life services. Here's one of the services in Hope Square, Weymouth in 2008.

 

Elfstravaganza

In 2019 west Dorset pre-school Wren’s Nursery at Hooke Court, near Beaminster, raised hundreds of pounds for charity Julia's House at its annual fundraising ‘Elfstravaganza.'

Dorset Echo: Wren’s Nursery at Hooke Court near Beaminster in 2019Wren’s Nursery at Hooke Court near Beaminster in 2019

The children were sent on a mission to find the mischievous elves who had mistakenly taken Father Christmas’ magical snowflakes, which were essential for helping him take flight on Christmas eve. The children followed their maps around the grounds to find elves ice skating, sledging and flying on zip wires. During their search, the children identified a secret code to give to Father Christmas to help him retrieve his magic snow.

At the end of the search, the children discovered Father Christmas in his grotto to receive a gift for helping save Christmas.