IT seems a curious decision to change the date of the community Christmas lunch.
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The City of Greater Bendigo has brought the event forward to December 23, rather than the traditional Christmas day gathering.
The event started several years ago, when the Christian organisation Epicentre Bendigo staged a beautiful community lunch to ensure those would be alone or in need on Christmas day would not be isolated.
When Epicentre could no longer continue, several Bendigo agencies and indeed this community pulled together at the last minute to keep the tradition alive.
But this year, the city has made the decision to change the venue from the Town Hall to the Bendigo Stadium and host it two days before Christmas with the view to encouraging more businesses to get involved.
The city claims the move is to make the day more sustainable - yet at no stage has the event been short of volunteers, or funds, thanks to the overwhelming generosity of the people of our city.
The Bendigo Stadium has made a generous donation, and that should not be overlooked, but there seems to have been little consultation about whether the day should be moved.
The true meaning of the community lunch appears to have been lost. The day is about ensuring there is no one alone at Christmas - an occasion which is well documented to be one of great despair for many.
The true meaning of the community lunch appears to have been lost.
