By Sophie McCarrick [email protected]
Residents of the NECI special needs school in Luz enjoyed a Christmas lunch on December 14, put together especially for them, with the emphasis aimed at sharing the joy of Christmas with all.
At 2pm, 20 NECI members gathered at Bar Carib in Praia da Luz.
NECI is a school that focuses on meeting the needs of people with disabilities or handicaps. They bring them together in order to develop their quality of life, including how they integrate with people around them, at work, school, home and social life.
As a non-profit organisation, they depend solely on the goodwill of local people.
A full traditional Christmas lunch was cooked and served to the members, organised by Ann Drummey of Bar Carib.
Following lunch, Chad Bourne, Chaddy, dressed up as Santa and delivered individual gifts to all.
In addition, the Kelly’s Golf Society donated a laptop and a local couple made a donation of €100 which was presented to NECI.
As the icing on the cake, local band Branded volunteered time from their busy schedule to play music for the afternoon.
Ann Drummey said: “When the band began to play, it was really touching to see the reactions of everyone. All they wanted to do was get up and dance.”
NECI staff, including Vice President of the group José Campos, who were present at the lunch, all agreed that the afternoon had been a success and enjoyed by all.
“The afternoon was enjoyed not only by everyone who attended, it gave me a lot of pleasure to see residents of the NECI school having such a lovely time,” said Ann.
For more information about NECI or to make a donation, please call 282 788 692, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.en.neci.pt.
