Westpac staff warm our hearts

Mission Australia wants to send a warm thank you to all the generous Westpac staff who donated clothes as part of the recent Winter Warmer Appeal.

Fifty wheelie bins’ worth of jumpers, jackets and other warm clothes were collected from six Westpac sites in the Sydney area - George Street, Martin Place, Market and Kent Street sites in the city as well as Concord and Parramatta to the west.

The team at Mission Australia’s Big Heart collection warehouse at Bellambi, NSW, is always in need of good-quality clothes to sell from its seven op shops in Shoalhaven, the Illawarra and Campbelltown. This year the need is even greater, given that much of the warehouse stock was destroyed by fire in March.

“We lost so much in the fire so we desperately need to restock,” said NSW Service Manager Social Enterprise Andrew Douglas. “At this time of year people traditionally give away their summer clothes, having donated winter garments around Christmas – but of course the need during the colder months is for warm jumpers and jackets that keep out the chill.

“If you have good-quality clothing in the back of the wardrobes that you never wear we’ll gratefully accept them to help people in need.”

Anyone in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven areas who would like to donate good-quality warm clothes can drop them off into a local Mission Australia Big Heart donation bin or at any of the seven stores.

Other ways to help this winter
You can also support Australians doing it tough by making a donation to Mission Australia’s Winter Appeal – if you act today you’ll still be able to make a tax deduction for the 2010-11 financial year.

Mission Australia has already raised more than $663,000 thanks to community generosity, but we still need you help to reach our $860,000 target this winter. Every dollar makes a difference to the lives of struggling families and individuals.

Another great way to support Mission Australia this winter is to host a Winter Sleepout event. Whether you get your workplace together for a small gathering and have a gold-coin donation or you throw the event of the year, every dollar counts.

What is your 'New Year's resolution'?

The 2010 New Year Appeal asks the public to think about their New Year’s resolutions. The appeal challenges people to consider adding a worthwhile cause to their list, such as 'helping a homeless person to transform their life in 2010'.

With over 100,000 Australians without a place to call home tonight, the scale of the homelessness problem remains high despite the efforts of government and not-for-profits like Mission Australia.

Daniel Petsalis, manager of Sydney's Missionbeat service, noted recently that the number of homeless people sleeping rough in Sydney is on the rise: "The City of Sydney’s most recent count found numbers had increased by almost 13 per cent between 2008 and 2009 – from 354 to 399," said Daniel.

If you are interested in helping a homeless person this year, donations to the New Year Appeal will help support Mission Australia services like Missionbeat or Mission Australia Centre.

You can help by making a one-off donation, or choosing to donate through our regular giving program.  Alternatively you might like to consider other ways you can contribute - click here to learn more.

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Please email Emmanueld@missionaustralia.com.au for questions about the 2010 New Year Appeal

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Perth's Christmas Lunch in the Park is all wrapped up with the help of local celebrities

Mission Australia - along with the help of over 400 volunteers - will deliver our 34th annual Christmas Lunch in the Park event again this year for those in our community seeking companionship and a place to celebrate the festive season.  Each guest will receive a traditional Christmas lunch, a gift from Santa, entertainment and great company!

In support of the event, a group of Perth celebrities and media representatives gave up their time to take part in a huge 'Christmas present-wrapping drive'. The gifts - all donated by generous West Australian individuals and businesses - will be distributed to children attending the Christmas Lunch in the Park event.

One of Perth's best known voices, ABC Radio presenter Bernadette Young, also took part in the wrapping event. You can read Bernadette's blog and see photos here:  blogs.abc.net.au/wa/2009/12/its-a-wrap.html?program=720_afternoons.

Perth Now also covered the 'present-wrapping drive' and have added a video to their website:  player.video.news.com.au/perthnow/#1354986774

Event details:
Where:  Wellington Square Park, East Perth
When:  Friday, 25 December 2009
Time:  11.30am to 2pm
Cost:  Free!
RSVP:  None required, just turn up on the day!

For more information or donations visit www.missionpromotion.com/clip

Seven's Sunrise covers recent UTurn graduation

In a recent post we reported on the latest graduation ceremony at the U-Turn service in Tasmania - a highly successful youth program.

U-Turn aims to break the cycle of motor vehicle theft by engaging participants in 'hands on' mechanical training while addressing life-skills and personal development issues. Please visit the U-Turn website for more information.

Seven's Sunrise program also provided coverage of the event - the clip can be viewed here:

U-Turn graduates donate restored car to victims of car theft

A Moonah family, who’ve had three cars stolen in the past four years, were today handed the keys to a rebuilt `95 Hyundai Excel by six young Tasmanians graduating from Mission Australia’s U-Turn automotive training course.

U-Turn is a ‘best practice’ diversionary program for young people who have been involved in, or who are at risk of becoming involved in, motor vehicle theft. The core component of the program is a structured ten-week automotive training course in car maintenance and body work, delivered in a workshop environment.

Mission Australia’s Community Services Operations Manager Lucy O’Flaherty said the victim, who received the car on behalf of her family, said the car had gone some way in restoring her faith in young people and the community.

“During the 10-week course, the U-Turn participants repaired numerous dents on the RACT donated car, completed an engine service, undertook a full service, a test run and finished off with a complete re-spray,” Ms O’Flaherty said.

“The opportunity for participants to repair a vehicle for presentation to a victim of vehicle theft is one of the most important components of the U-Turn program.”

Graduates were presented with certificates by the Minister for Infrastructure Mr Graeme Sturges MHA and Tasmania Police Commander Steve Bond.

Achievement Awards were also presented at the graduation including the Hazell Bros Most Outstanding Graduate, the RACT Safety Awareness Award, the Encouragement Award for Effort and the Most Improved for Attitude and Enthusiasm.

The U-Turn workshop is located in Moonah with a supported accommodation service available to enable young people from other parts of the State to participate in the program. The program is delivered by Mission Australia, under contract to Tasmania Police, and is funded by the State Government.


In last year’s budget, the State Government announced additional funding for the appointment of two part-time youth workers as dedicated post course support workers. The State Government has also committed ongoing funding for the program until June 2010.

Mission Australia has almost 280 services across every state and territory in Australia and has five offices in Tasmania, located in Burnie, Launceston, Hobart, Moonah and Devonport.



For more information about this event: Lucinda Bray, Font Public Relations, 0438 280 486

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What is U-Turn?

U-Turn aims to break the cycle of motor vehicle theft by engaging participants in 'hands on' mechanical training while addressing life-skills and personal development issues.

Download the UTurn brochure - or visit the UTurn website for more service information.

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Mission Australia thanks the community for their generosity this winter

Australia's coldest, darkest season was made a little warmer this year for many of our homeless clients, thanks to some wonderful organisations and their very generous employees.

During the winter season of 2009, Mission Australia received collections of basics including blankets, grocery items and toiletries to distribute to some of our most marginalised members of society; for these items we owe a resounding and heart-felt THANK YOU!

Something as elementary as seasonal change can pose devastating affects on homeless people's health, especially those that endure rough-sleeping. With many Mission Australia clients surviving without any other support network, these recent donations have been highly sort-after and appreciated.

Below are the very generous organisations involved in this year's Winter Appeal - many thanks to all involved:

• AMP Foundation
• Bayer
• Davis Langdon
• Deutsche Bank
• Hamilton James & Bruce
• Macquarie Bank
• Optus

Without the generous support of the community, Mission Australia wouldnt be able to help so many homeless clients each winter. Last year alone Mission Australia assisted 32,211* homeless pepople to help them transform their lives.

Click here to learn more about Mission Australia Homelessness Services.

*Mission Australia Annual Report 2007-08