Lorraine Kelly's pro-McCann 'Missing People' Christmas message 2018

LORRAINE KELLY

Think of families who are missing a family member around the dinner table this Christmas

No matter how much our nearest and dearest can annoy us at Christmas time, from not helping with the washing up or arguing after one too many, just imagine what it would be without them
Comment
By Lorraine Kelly, Sun Columnist
22nd December 2018, 2:24 am
Updated: 22nd December 2018, 2:24 am
CHRISTMAS is a time for families to get together to celebrate then end up sulking over who got the bigger portion of turkey and roast potatoes before fighting over the TV remote.
It’s a time when new parents half kill themselves buying presents for their ­little ones then watch in dismay as they ignore the expensive plastic toys to play with the wrapping paper.

The return of the festive season brings a flood of emotions with it, especially if there are tensions in the family


It’s when we make ourselves feel ­bilious by overdosing on Christmas pudding and jumbo-sized tubs of ­chocolate sweeties and guzzling too much booze.
It’s when teenagers stay in bed all day and roll their eyes when asked to help with the washing-up or tidy their room.
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For anyone who has lost someone they love, the grief at Christmas is intensity ­magnified.

Bickering over trivial things is normal at Christmas, we sometimes don't appreciate how lucky we are to have our love ones around us at this time of year
All those adverts featuring happy families around the table, feasting and carousing, unwrapping presents around the tree or kissing under the mistletoe are like a punch in the stomach.
It’s almost unbearable when you ­realise you no longer have to buy your mum, dad, brother or sister a present or send them a card.
That empty chair on Christmas Day is utterly heartbreaking.
Then there are the thousands of ­people who have seen their loved ones disappear from the face of the earth.

Any empty seat on Christmas Day can be heartbreaking when a relative or friend should be there
They hope and pray they are safe somewhere and try not to lose hope.
High-profile cases such as the ­Madeleine McCann disappearance receive the most attention, but her ­parents Kate and Gerry are the first ones to highlight other families who are also suffering, and they have both done so much to help the Missing People charity through fundraising and ­awareness campaigns.
This week the police announced that they will not give up their search for Madeleine, who disappeared from a holiday resort in Portugal 11 years ago.
Despite spending £12million on the hunt for the little girl who was only three years old when she disappeared, we are still no nearer finding out what happened to her.

Families like Kate and Gerry McCann spend another year without their children and not knowing if they're alive
There has been criticism of the high cost of the investigation, which was granted a further £150,000 last month. Many have said the money would have been better spent in the fight against knife crime or getting more police on the streets.
But how do you put a price on the life of a child?
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Does it really have to be a choice between finding children and saving them from being attacked by deadly weapons?

There are people who will never have peace of mind during the festive season
If it was your son or daughter who was missing then there would be no limit to the amount of money you would be willing to see poured into finding them and bringing them home safe and sound.
I cannot begin to imagine the agony parents of missing children go through and the heavy burden of despair they have to bear every day.
Many will never get peace of mind. There will be no resolution and they will continue to turn between having a sense of hope and feeling utter despair.
Some children leave home after a fight, a misunderstanding or just because they were unable to cope.

Reach out to those who may be lonely or who are missing a loved one this Christmas
Sometimes they are suffering from a mental health problem and life becomes impossible, so they run away.
I would urge those who are scared to reach out and make contact for fear of being rebuffed, to simply pick up the phone or send a text or email, or better still just go home for Christmas.
Your family will not judge you — they will just be overwhelmingly glad to see you are safe and well.
If you don’t feel as though you are able to make direct contact, you can get in touch with the Missing People charity free on 116 000 and they can pass your message along as well as give you help and advice.
Madeleine McCann's father Gerry McCann describes 'disbelief, panic and terror' at moment he realised daughter was missing in rare interview
Christmas time is for families to be together, and reuniting would be the best present ever.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a merry Christmas — even those of you who disagree vehemently with things I’ve written in the past 12 months.
I love your lively feedback and look forward to more of the same in the new year.
Be kind to each other, keep safe . . . and here’s to a happier and less divisive and toxic 2019.

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Ms Kelly is no fool. She has made a career out of fluffiness.

Hi Jill Havern,perhaps the parents of Madeleine,Kate,Gerry do not have to pass a xmas message,as Lorraine has said enough for the pair of them in the Sun article?
Why put yourself in the highlights,when close friends can explain your thoughts,as fluffy Lorraine has done?

‘How do you put a price on the life of a child?’. Excellent question, Lorraine. 
Madeleine’s life has worth precisely nothing to those who should have loved her most, and their cunning friends.

Cmaryholmes wrote:‘How do you put a price on the life of a child?’. Excellent question, Lorraine. 
Madeleine’s life has worth precisely nothing to those who should have loved her most, and their cunning friends.

been worth....