Seniors embraced the spirit of gift-giving by donating their Christmas money to two rest homes.

The Mount Zion Senior Circle split a total of $600 between the Lorraine Rest Home in Warwick and Matilda Smith Williams Seniors’ Residence in Devonshire.

The seniors club, from Mount Zion AME Church in Southampton, used to raise cash for a “secret Santa” exchange of gifts, but decided instead to give to others.

Bette Richardson, the fundraiser organiser, said: “Next year we’ll pick two others and maybe do more.”

Ms Richardson, 73, from Pembroke, got the idea after several people suggested a Christmas donation.

She explained: “We usually exchange gifts at Christmas, but someone came up with the idea to collect money and give it to a charity or somebody in need so they suggested the rest home.

“So this year, when it came up, I said ‘Now, this year we’re not exchanging any gifts with each other — what we’re going to do is bring our $20 for gifts and we’ll donate it to one of the rest homes’.”

Ms Richardson said the money was raised through members’ donations and from guests at a Thanksgiving dinner in November.

She added: “The Thanksgiving dinner is open to friends as well, so, including the visitors, we were able to get $600 from 30 people that day.”

Ms Richardson said: “Usually we get 20 to 22 people for Thanksgiving, but we had 30 people. Some of the helpers in the kitchen pitched in as well.”

She added: “When we went over to the rest homes they were so grateful. Even the matrons were saying ‘we’re so glad you came and thought about us’.

“I told them ‘it’s not very much, but it’s from seniors to seniors that are in need, whatever the need may be’.”

Ms Richardson also said that, as a senior’s club, many of the members empathised with people in rest homes.

She explained: “In the homes that we visited, we saw people that we didn’t expect to be there and we thought that might happen to us.

“We are seniors — the oldest member of our club is 99 — and we’d like to be helped when we get older or in need.”