Overlook sleighs and reindeer – actual property agent Karyn O’Dea delivers festive cheer to her Gold Coast neighborhood annually with two vehicles, 1000’s of free Christmas puddings and a small however devoted workforce.
It’s an infinite operation for the Ray White Robina agent and her workforce, who’ve hand-delivered 2,764 Christmas puddings to property homeowners all through her patch this yr.
Ms O’Dea has been operating the annual Christmas giveaway for the previous 14 years, a practice that started as a small gesture and has since grown right into a full-scale neighborhood operation.
“It’s about giving again to the neighborhood at Christmas,” she stated.
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Karyn O’Dea (centre) and her workforce at Ray White Robina delivered greater than 2,700 Christmas puddings to her neighborhood this yr. Image: Equipped
“We’ve an enormous combine of individuals in our neighborhood from younger households and professionals, however there’s plenty of older folks in our neighborhood too and at Christmas time, you need to be sure that everybody’s okay.”
Working within the Robina space on the Gold Coast, Ms O’Dea stated the thought started with 300 puddings in her first yr, which had been chosen fastidiously for practicality.
Considered one of this yr’s fortunate Christmas pudding recipients. Image: Equipped
“At first, I needed to present one thing little again to the neighborhood as a result of the neighborhood actually does assist us,” she stated.
“I thought of what you can provide to somebody at Christmas and go away for them if they weren’t residence. You wouldn’t go away a bottle of wine or sweets, so we went with Christmas puddings.”
The workforce spends weeks sourcing after which delivering 1000’s of puddings annually. Image: Equipped
What began as a modest giveaway has steadily expanded as her shopper database grew. Final yr, Ms O’Dea and her workforce delivered 2,221 puddings, and he or she stated her shopper checklist has grown by a whole lot of latest property homeowners this yr.
Sourcing that many Christmas puddings has change into one of many largest logistical challenges, forcing Ms O’Dea and her workforce to scour supermarkets within the weeks main as much as the festive season.
The workforce has been making a gift of Christmas puddings for the previous 14 years. Image: Equipped
“As quickly as we see a pudding on the cabinets, we go to each grocery store round and clear out the cabinets,” she stated. “Even the workers within the retailer know who I’m.”
Delivering the puddings isn’t any small feat both, because it turns into a full-time job for 4 workers in two vehicles over about two weeks.
Ms O’Dea says she continues to giveaway Christmas puddings annually to present again to the neighborhood. Image: Equipped
However Ms O’Dea stated the response from the neighborhood has saved the custom alive yr after yr.
“I get plenty of calls and plenty of textual content messages, and I get plenty of photographs of the pudding on the desk,” she stated.
For Ms O’Dea, the motivation stays easy: “It’s simply good to have the ability to say Merry Christmas to folks in the neighborhood.”
