Wagga Vinnies looks to ease the holiday burden with Family Fun Day

Vinnies NSW School and Youth Engagement Officer Ana Suarez said school holidays can be a particularly tough time for some struggling families.

"We are welcoming everyone, however we encourage especially families who are going through financial hardship, emotional stress, who are really suffering come and join us," she said.

"We've seen with increased cost of living it's been really hard for families to afford things, and it's the school holidays, school holidays are really hard for some families."

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During school holidays struggling families suddenly find themselves having to provide extra meals for their children each day and keeping kids entertained can also be costly, she said.

This is the first time Vinnies have run this event and it was the sheer amount of families now asking for help that made it necessary. And people can come to the fun day and find help in a judgement-free environment.

"We're getting more families asking for help ... most of the people in towns around Wagga don't know what services or help we provide," she said.

"You don't need to be embarrassed to ask for help, we all need help at some point we just want people to feel safe and feel comfortable."

St Vincent de Paul Society NSW Wagga Central Council President Peter Burgess said the fun day could be a good icebreaker for families.

"It can be hard to ask for help ... some people need assistance with food, some need help paying bills - there's no shame in that, least of all right now," Mr Burgess said.

"The family fun day is going to be a really good icebreaker for people who have been considering asking for assistance but don't quite know what's out there," Mr Burgess said.

There will be free entertainment for kids, including rides, a jumping castle, a petting zoo, pony rides, face painting, as well as assistance available from Micah Hub, Vinnies Youth, Vinnies shop and Eidal Quinn.

There will also be free food and coffee and registration will give people a free meal from the barbeque, a free drink, a free ice cream, and a free coffee for adults.

The St Vincent de Paul Society family fun day is at the Wagga Wagga Showground this Saturday April 22, with free food and activities for kids.

People planning on attending are encouraged to register by emailing waggafamilyfunday@vinnies.org.au and to let Vinnies know how many adults and children will attend from your family.

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