A charitable group is sending special gift bags to women's shelters.

A charitable group in south-west Calgary is working hard to prepare special gift bags for local women's shelters.

Sue McElhanney, founder of the All 4 Women Society, has set up a project entitled Purposeful Giving For Abused Women in your Community, which is delivering presents to women in emergency shelters across the province in time for Christmas.

Each bag will be filled with bath and beauty products, the Calgary Herald reports, and is designed to offer a small comfort to women going through difficult times.

"It's something pretty, something usable, something she would not be expecting. This small gift may help her feel that she's part of a community that cares," explained Ms McElhanney.

She has been collecting donations and gathering supplies for the past six years, before creating decorative gift bags to give to those in need.

"For a woman to get herself to a shelter is a huge undertaking, in terms of making that decision, let alone physically getting there. The fear associated with leaving what you know can be crippling," Ms McElhanney added.

This can often affect self-esteem and confidence, therefore having a surprise gift can offer a ray of light at an otherwise dark time.

The charity worker argued that this is a huge problem in society at present, with many people not willing to talk about it.

However, she claims that discussing this issue, raising awareness and changing attitudes is critical in the effort to stop domestic abuse and aid understanding.

The 52-year-old continued to tell the newspaper that these are normal women who could be living next door and are too afraid to mention their problems.

Ms McElhanney went on to add that after conducting this volunteer programme for many years, she has no plans to give it up.

"I never dreamt it could get this big… this was something I could do to give back," she said.

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