Like many things we do today, sending and receiving Christmas cards is steeped in history and tradition.

The first commercial Christmas card was commissioned in 1843 by Sir Henry Cole, Founding Director of the Victoria and Albert Museum, and designed by John Callcott Horsley.

That original venture was considered a commercial flop – but the idea took off and we have been sending Christmas cards ever since.

UNICEF produced the first charity Christmas card in 1949. The picture chosen for the card – of children dancing around a maypole – was painted by a seven-year-old girl from a small town in then Czechoslovakia that received UNICEF assistance after World War II.

Aisling Centre has stayed a little closer to home in creating its new charity Christmas card. The beautiful artwork on the card is an original design created and gifted to the centre by local illustrator and artist, Gráinne Knox.

Gráinne – whose art is inspired by the people, places and stories that surround her – said she was “delighted to design this Christmas card for the Aisling Centre to support the life-changing and lifesaving work they do”.

She went on to explain: “In September, I started studying for the Certificate in Counselling Studies in South West College, so this seemed like a perfect fit. My family have firsthand experience in losing a loved one to mental health; my beautiful goddaughter Erne left us two years ago.

“The work undertaken by the team in the Aisling Centre is so important, and it’s crucial to shout from the rooftops that it’s okay to feel lost and down, and it’s okay to reach out for help.

“So, if I can help raise awareness of where to go to find that help, and to help raise a few pounds to support it, I’m more than happy to do so.”

Bridie Sweeney, Service Director at Aisling Centre, said she was delighted with the cards. “People don’t send as many Christmas cards as they used to, and when they do they want to send a nice, meaningful card and what better way to do that with a charity card which has been created with so much love and supports a vital local mental health service?”

Bridie explained that while the cards were designed with Christmas in mind, they have been left blank inside, and the detail of the artwork is so beautiful they would be suitable for almost any occasion.

She herself had used them as a birthday card and is aware that they have also been used to send notes of sympathy or thanks. She also pointed out the cards have been printed on sustainably resourced paper.

“I am hoping that someone will send one to me and I will frame it for my office,” said Bridie.

These beautiful cards are very reasonably priced at £4.50 for a pack of 10, and are available to buy/order from Aisling Centre and are also on sale in the Westend Coffee Shop, Enniskillen Credit Union and Macnean Credit Union, Belcoo.

100 per cent of the proceeds from the cards will be used to support the delivery of counselling and wellbeing services at Aisling Centre.

For further information on the work of Aisling Centre, see its newly designed website, www.theaislingcentre.com.

You can self-refer to counselling from the Aisling Centre website, or by contacting the centre directly at 028 6632 5811.