It is almost time for LEaF HQ to shut up shop for the Christmas period. Like many other businesses, we’ll be closed from Friday 23rd December until Tuesday 3rd January, and we are very much looking forward to spending some time with our loved ones, and away from our screens.
This time of year is always one of excitement, festivities and get-togethers and we very much enjoyed our Christmas meal out at local Italian restaurant, Il Paradiso del Cibo. (The food is amazing!) But it is also a good time to look back on the year that has passed, to take stock and to say thank you – to our clients and to all the fantastic translators, proofreaders and international SEOs that we have had the pleasure of working with in 2022.
From the day LEaF was launched, we have been driven by a motivation to have a positive impact on the world around us. We live this each and every day through the way we treat the people we work with and through our commitment to making LEaF Translations as sustainable as possible. With that in mind, we have never been a company to send out Christmas cards; instead, we see Christmas as a great opportunity to give something back.
This year, we have chosen to support two fantastic causes: Choose Love and a local food bank.
Sadly, we live in a world where refugees and asylum seekers are often treated with suspicion and disdain rather than welcomed with open arms. We believe that all people deserve respect and compassion, wherever they are from and whatever situation they find themselves in. I am truly grateful that I happen to have been born in the UK. It is not the fault of the people of Ukraine, Syria, Yemen and more that they were born in their own respective countries. But they are just as deserving of a chance to live in a fair and peaceful society.
Choose Love is a shop where you can buy much-needed items for refugees – from hot food, to warm winter clothing, life-saving medical treatment and even reuniting a family. This year, we have purchased two Bundles of Warmth. If you are still looking to buy Christmas presents for loved ones and can’t think what to get people who already have everything, do take a look at the Choose Love shop.
Despite living in one of the richest countries in the world, a shocking number of people in the UK are now dependent on food banks to feed their families. This year, we sent Kate to the supermarket with a list from The Collective Sharehouse. They are always grateful for donations, but especially at this time of year, with much-needed items including tinned meats and fish, minced beef, chicken in sauce, cooking oil, sugar, rice, liquid laundry detergent and toothpaste and toothbrushes. For me, Christmas is about spending time with loved ones and enjoying all the festivities. But it is also about remembering those less fortunate and showing gratitude.
We hope that you have a wonderful end to 2022, no matter how you celebrate at this time of year and we look forward to working with you when we reopen in 2023.
