Share the Dignity

June 6, 2018

Michelle Povah, Coordinator Northern Sydney Family Referral Service and Emergency Relief Program from our Naremburn Family Centre was asked to speak at a Share the Dignity afternoon tea fundraiser recently.

Share the Dignity is a women’s charity that makes a real, on-the-ground difference to homeless women and victims of domestic violence.

They collect thousands of sanitary pads, tampons and personal hygiene products every year for women experiencing homelessness and poverty. Small dignities make a big difference. They also fund funerals for victims of domestic violence and campaign for justice for women in Australia.

In March 2015 Rochelle Courtenay asked friends to help her collect pads and tampons to help out local people who were homeless in her area of Brisbane. That first small collection led to the birth of Share the Dignity and their bi-annual #DignityDrives.

Every April and August they ask the public to donate pads and tampons to collection points throughout the country. They then donate the thousands of packets of unopened sanitary products to their partner charities – one being CatholicCare!

WOMEN NEED YOUR HELP

On any given night in Australia, 1 in 200 people are homeless. 44% are female. 27% are children under the age of 18. Family violence is the number one reason people present to homeless services. 55% of females cite this reason.

When you donate sanitary products to Share The Dignity, you’re donating much more than pads and tampons. You’re giving a woman experiencing homelessness or financial crisis the essentials, so she doesn’t need to choose between food and dignity.

Next time you’re doing your shopping, keep in mind: one box for me, one box for her. Imagine how many boxes you will be able to drop into your closest collection box during their next #DignityDrive.

Share the Dignity support CatholicCare by providing handbags filled with toiletries and sanitary items for our clients who are experiencing domestic violence or are vulnerable in some way. CatholicCare treasures our partnership with this amazing organisation and Michelle was delighted to present at their annual fundraiser.

Check out: https://www.sharethedignity.com.au
This video is also a wonderful summary of what Share the Dignity offer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTw8NGxABkw&feature=youtu.be

Photo credit: Share the Dignity

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