29 Nov 2025
It takes a moment to recognise Anna Bassil – aka the Marshalswick Elf – without her rosy cheeks, pigtail bunches, stripy leggings, green tunic and pointed hat.
But it won’t be long until she again assumes her seasonal persona for the fourth year in a row, acting as festive fundraiser for two much-in-demand local charities.
Anna will be running a daily 5K around the streets surrounding The Quadrant and beyond, including Wheatfields, Skyswood and St John Fisher schools, and sometimes even Bernards Heath.
She is again backing St Albans Action for Homeless – supporting local street sleepers by providing hot meals and distributing essentials and toiletries – and St Albans Community Pantry, rescuing and redistributing supermarket food to those in need.
Part of this involves raising awareness of the Reverse Advent Calendar, which encourages people to donate a specified item from a list each day, either by creating a box of all 24 items themselves, or dropping individual items at communal collection points: EYES On St Albans and Nadya Giffen Therapies at The Quadrant.
Anna also incorporates a monetary push to ensure there are funds to provide items in the months after Christmas, and with the Community Pantry relocating to Sandridge in the New Year, she is calling out to local tradespeople who might be able to help get their new premises into shape.
Anna was happy to grab a coffee in Fade to Black to discuss her self-created Christmas tradition while still relatively incognito – at least until Monday when the fun and madness begin…
“It’s a huge challenge, but I don’t think I could not do it now, it’s definitely become a habit. I always feel that if I’m asking people to donate things then I have to do something in return, I just can’t expect people to part with their money because I’m asking them to.
“I’ve raised the game a bit this year – not every day, but sometimes the elf will be riding a reindeer.” (We can’t wait to see how that looks!)
Fitting in her daily runs around the demands of everyday life can also prove a challenge: “There are a couple of days when I have to go into the office, and I’m juggling with dog walking and the rest of it, so then I might be out when it’s still dark, which means the schoolkids won’t see me.
“On Monday I’m going to a wedding after my run so the next day I’ll be out in the afternoon. Last year we went for a weekend in Annecy in France and the elf dress, tights, hat and candy cane went with me so I could do my runs over there – I’m very dedicated! But my daughter always insists that I leave the house after she’s gone to school so I’m not running past when she’s with her friends.”
Anna relies on the support she receives from the local business community, which even saw Adam at the Calling Cobbler adapt her trainers to incorporate elf slippers, as well as the shops that store donations over the month.
Sharon Linney from Action for Homeless said: “As you know we offer wrap around care and support many families and guys who have moved into temporary or their forever homes. We know times are hard but if you can help someone less fortunate than yourself please think about doing a Reverse Advent.
“Anna is a ray of sunshine on a rainy day and I love seeing her doing her daily run. I know she has a few surprises up her sleeve this year and we cannot wait to see her in action in all weathers. We are so thankful for her kindness to others!”
Raihaanah Ahmed from St Albans Community Pantry explained why they needed extra help this year.
“Sadly our current landlord has declined our bid to renew our lease as the neighbouring units are not happy with a food aid agency operating from the estate. We have always paid our rent on time and in full. And have not violated any conditions of the lease. Consequently we have been forced to move, an expense we had not planned for and cannot afford at this time.
“We came to know of Spencer Hall in Sandridge and learnt that it has been in a state of neglect for many years due to a lack of volunteers and funds. We are happy to share that we have entered into a partnership with Sandridge Youth and Sports Association to rebuild this once thriving community hub. The building needs major improvements and we’ll be working hard to restart a diverse range of accessible community services.
“We are sure you will agree this marriage of two well-used and loved initiatives will bring an incredible amount of social value to the locality and the city.
“We are so grateful to Anna for kickstarting our campaign, her enthusiasm and creativity brings so much cheer and much needed attention to our cause.
“At present we are supporting 600 people a week with food intervention and rescuing almost 20,000 tonnes every year of food from 26 food outlets that would have headed to landfill. We work with 46 partners including Vista, Families First, Citizens Advice Bureau, York House, Hightown, schools, GP practices, places of worship, Druglink, Herts Young Homelessness and so many more. Over the course of the last five years we have been visited by between 800 and 1,000 people just on Christmas Eve alone.
“We are completely self-funded, using fundraising events to sustain our daily emergency food box deliveries, weekly community meals, bread redistribution and community fridge sessions.
“We appreciate that there are many charities and services that are in need of financial help, but hope that our plea will be considered at this pivotal time in our journey.”
Quadrant business owner Nadya Giffen said: “We are delighted to be supporting Action for Homeless and the Community Pantry again this year by being an official drop off point at Nadya Giffen Therapies the Quadrant. We have already started collecting for the Reverse advent and ask people to donate generously.
“Last year, I dressed up as an elf to match Anna but what will I be this year? Could it be Santa? A reindeer or a snowman? Only one way to find out… and might the one and only Jezabella be joining me to dress up?”
EYES on St Albans’ Jez Levy – the “Jezabella” in question – added: “Local organisations and charities like Action for Homeless and St Albans Community Pantry simply SHOULD NOT exist! With massive underfunding at a local level and increases in the cost of living caused by successive governments the need for such organisations will only increase.
“I applaud Action for Homeless and Community Pantry for the work they do all year round, giving over space in EYES on St Albans and promoting these great local causes is the very least I can do to support food collections at this time of year!
“Thank you to both of them, in addition to the wonderful Marshalswick Elf for taking up the annual challenge to help those in need at Christmas!”
You can support Anna’s efforts via two different JustGiving pages: www.justgiving.com/page/themarshalswickelf-actionforhomeless and www.justgiving.com/page/themarshalswickelf-communitypantry
And you can also follow the adventures of the Marshalswick Elf at https://www.facebook.com/groups/455372716733698/
