Christmas Smiles boxes for Little Troopers

Each year, Little Troopers runs a campaign called 'Christmas Smiles' to specifically support children who have a serving parent deployed overseas on military operations or exercise over the holidays.

Last year, 3,400 British Armed Forces personnel were deployed. Given that 79% of military personnel have children, that is a significant number of children who are separated from their parent each year.

Understandably, Christmas time is a particularly difficult time for military families to be apart and Little Troopers often hears from families who report that deployment at this time of year significantly impacts their child's wellbeing.

Last year, more than 2,500 families (with many families having multiple children) benefited from Little Troopers' Christmas Smiles.

This Christmas Little Troopers is looking at other ways that Christmas Smiles can deliver equal reach and impact, benefiting as many military children as possible.

Our aim is to create a Christmas Smiles Box. This would be packed with Christmas themed goodies, as well as including supporting resources from Little Troopers. The resources would help each child feel connected to their serving parent, as well as providing guided activities for children to complete at home to help them talk about and manage their feelings at this difficult time.

Our intention is that every penny raised in this Give as You Live fundraising campaign will go towards producing Little Troopers deployment resources for us to include in each Christmas Smiles box. These special resources help to keep children connected to their parents, even when they are miles apart, as well as encouraging children to talk about and better navigate their feelings during this challenging time.

In addition to your support, we are also speaking to potential sponsors and grant making organisations to provide funds to cover the cost of the box itself and the packing event.

We so appreciate your support this Christmas to bring smiles to those that need it.