News Beat
Babul’s Darlington marks ten years of its Festive Feed
Zak and Shuhel Ahmed, owners of Babul’s on Skinnergate, opened the restaurant from 11am to those in need or alone.
Zak said: “It went really well, it was very well organised, so a big kudos to all the volunteers.
“It was a full-house and people just kept coming. But rather than coming and going, people stayed for the whole event. It was absolutely packed. You could see everybody smiling from ear to ear.
“The place was buzzing and it’s just such a nice, friendly, warm atmosphere. Everybody was so appreciative and complimentary telling us they had such a great Christmas Day. It was nice to see them all.”
Preparation for Babul’s tenth ‘festive feed’ began on Christmas Eve, with Zak, his family, volunteers and staff working into the early hours of Christmas morning.
“My kids were here until 1am I think, organising canned food and tidying up here and there,” he explained.
“And for them, it just shows that we are doing something to give back, and they have to understand they are in a position where they have got more, so they need to give back.
“It’s a good education for them and they did it willingly as well, we did not force them to do it. They were asking what more they could do to help, they were so eager to help which was really nice.”
The restaurant was open for people to get a hot meal, a survival pack and even to get a haircut. All 100 of the survival packs, which included a hat, scarf, gloves and enough toiletries to last two or three months, were handed out.
More than 150 meals were served in the restaurant, and Babul’s had help from Darlington Borough Council this year.
Zak said: “They were really helpful because they sent us addresses of people who were vulnerable and could not leave home. We ended up doing approximately 40 deliveries to people’s houses and we had drivers who volunteered to come in and drop off stuff here and there.”
More than 200 people, including volunteers got a hot meal on Christmas Day, with any spare donations going to the King’s Church on Whessoe Road.
And Zak paid a huge thank you to everyone who donated.
He said: “The donations were greatly appreciated by those who received them. For us, we would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who donated because if we did not receive these donations, we would not have been able to help more people. People dug into their pockets and they spent their money, which in these times, was really nice to see.
“Some people may be struggling with the costs themselves; others may have cut back on their own things and donated. People came in with open hearts and open arms and dropped off so many things and kept asking what we needed or what they could donate.
“Some people came back after they did their Christmas shopping with things they had bought. We also had a couple of volunteers who were not from Darlington who were just passing through and had heard about the festive feed. They were only here that night and wanted to help, so they helped us with a huge delivery we got from Friends Community Hub of Darlington Quakers on Skinnergate.
“The Christmas spirit was unbelievable.”
And Zak added the event would not have gone ahead without the support from all the volunteers.
“The list of volunteers who wanted to sign up was crazy. The difficulty is trying to keep everybody involved,” he said.
“We organised several teams and everybody got stuck in, they went out of their way to get whatever it was done. It is their determination and their goodwill, that allows us to put on a really good, organised event that helps so many people.
“Thank you is not enough for the people who gave up their time, and it is not just on Christmas Day. Volunteers were helping throughout for weeks in advance. Some people volunteered days before but could not come on Christmas Day and I feel like they do not get the credit they should because they weren’t there to see it, but their help is just as needed as anybody who helped on the day.
“It is a massive team effort, more than 100 people got involved one way or another to make it happen.”
Shuhel Ahmed from Babul’s said it was amazing to help people for a tenth year but called on the government to help out independent businesses who put on such events.
He said: “Hospitality businesses across the country are doing their best to support those most in need, but it is becoming harder every year. The recent budget has added further financial pressure at a time when margins are already stretched.
“While community spirit remains incredibly strong, there needs to be greater recognition and support from government, particularly for the most vulnerable in our communities.
“When businesses and the public are both under pressure, initiatives like this become harder to sustain, even though the need has never been greater.”
