FOR six-year-old Lauren Martin, the excitement of the day was almost too much to bear.

She stood surrounded by bubble wrap and tissue paper, with boxes of gifts piled around and envel-opes scattered at her feet.

Twenty-four companies each donated a gift worthy of Christmas to the Gazette’s Christmas Countdown competition, which saw Gazette readers collecting three “doors” a day for two weeks to stick on to an empty advent calendar.

The Martin family, who live off Broome Grove, Wivenhoe, were picked from 1,000 entries to receive more than £6,000 worth of prizes.

Lauren’s parents, Tania and Jim, had decided not to tell her about their win and so it was as if Father Christmas had come early for the Broomegrove School pupil.

Mrs Martin, 40, said: “I just think it’s amazing how generous all of the companies have been to give all these gifts away when everyone is feeling the pinch.

“For one person to have all of these gifts – to do with as they please – is a nice gesture on their behalf, and on the Gazette’s for hosting the competition.”

Lauren delighted in tearing off the wrapping on five bead art sets, donated by Sequin and Bead Art, staking her claim on the one which “looked like Bambi”.

The craft set was not her favourite gift, though. That honour was divided between an annual pass for four people to Legoland in Windsor and a year’s family bowling at Tenpin, Cowdray Avenue, Colchester.

Once Lauren had disappeared to stamp on the bubble wrap in the kitchen, her delighted parents finally had a chance to see everything they had won.

Mrs Martin said: “I think I will keep the £300 voucher for Clarice House and take my mum to be pampered.

“I will also use one of the hot air balloon flights – from Virgin Balloon flights – as I have always wanted to do it.

“Otherwise, I think everyone will just be getting extra presents this Christmas, and Lauren has some birthday parties in the new year that these will be good presents for.

“It will be nice to play Father Christmas and just give stuff away.”

The family’s generosity is already evident, as the Kelly Bronze turkey has been given to St Helena Hospice.

“We have won so much, it will be nice to give something outside the family,” Mrs Martin said.

Other recipients of the couple’s generosity will be Mr Martin’s fellow employees at Hewlett Packard.

“We had booked a meal at Sloppy Joe’s, and then the company announced it wouldn’t be doing an allowance for Christmas this year, so we had to cancel it,” he said.

“I am going to use the £200 Sloppy Joe’s voucher towards that, so we can have a Christmas meal after all.”

The only gift that could cause problems was a set of Master 310 golf clubs, a flexi-play membership and two half-hour golf lessons from Lexden Wood Golf Club.

Mrs Martin has just started learning to play golf and, while her husband says she can use the lessons, he needs to compare his golf clubs to the prize before he decides who gets to keep them.

With up to ten nieces and nephews, siblings and friends, Mr and Mrs Martin know they will have plenty of people willing to share their good fortune.

“Several people have already said they are quite willing to go along to Colchester United for the carvery meal and match for six people,” Mr Martin joked.

The bumper win also included:

  • a party at Number Ten Bowling
  • ten tickets to the January 4 performance of Aladdin at the Ipswich Regent
  • a spa pamper package for two and a three-month Lifestyles membership from Aqua Springs at Leisure World
  • a paintballing party for 15 people at Paintball extreme
  • two Quasar games for 22 people
  • three MP3 players and stationery and pens from Stabilo
  • a £300 Feathers voucher
  • a £300 Specsavers voucher
  • a weekend break at a lodge in Wales, courtesy of Bluestone
  • four Jamie Oliver At Home casserole dishes, chopping boards and knives
  • one year’s membership to Topnotch
  • six family tickets to the Odeon cinema
  • two bundles of six Play THQ games for the Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS
  • a 45l aquarium from Life Collection, and
  • a skate night out for up to 40 people to Rollerworld.