The JCI Bradford Secret Santa Appeal is an annual initiative that has been running since 1989, aiming to bring festive cheer to disadvantaged children and families in the Bradford, Calderdale and Kirklees. The appeal is led by JCI Bradford in collaboration with various local organisations including businesses, like SMKD, schools and shopping centres and is one of the largest appeals of its kind in the UK. The Secret Santa Appeal engages with local communities in a collective effort to make a meaningful impact during the holiday season.
Every year, from the end of November to mid-December, the Secret Santa Appeal collects donations of Christmas presents through pop-up collection points, mini-appeals within various organisations, and dedicated stands in shopping centres, such as the Kirkgate Shopping Centre in Bradford. Over 6,000 presents are collected each year through these efforts, making it one of the largest projects of its kind in the country.
The ‘Mini-appeals’, such as the one run by SMKD each year, are a particularly important element. We participate by advertising the initiative to our incredible community of vapers and collect presents to be distributed alongside our teams own donations. We distribute flyers and gift tags bearing the first name, age, and gender of a nominated child are provided to our customers who wish to donate a gift and then collect the presents to be distributed to the deserving children.
Besides the obvious benefit of bringing joy to needy children during the festive season, the appeal fosters a strong sense of community, bringing people together with simple acts of kindness.
During the last week of November and the first week of December each year, you can make a child’s Christmas a merry one by donating a gift to the appeal.
You can make a donation by dropping a gift off at any SMKD Store. Locate your nearest SMKD store using our Store Locator.
If you qualify for our same day delivery service, you can place your order as normal and give your donation to our delivery driver when we bring your order.
If you can’t make it to one of our stores, and don’t qualify for our Same Day Delivery Service, you can still donate by posting a donation to the following address:
FAO: Secret Santa Appeal
SMKD, Unit 7, Bradford Chamber Business Park
New Lane
Bradford,
BD4 8BX
2022
2022 Was SMKD’s first participation in the appeal. Our team collected a whopping 90 gifts, with a considerable donation coming from the Open Reach team in Leeds.