News from Our Village to you.

Hi Friend! September has arrived, and in Victoria that means one thing, right? While the whole state goes a little AFL mad, our warehouses are still buzzing with the hard work and laughter of our incredible volunteers, who are gratefully receiving and packing pre-loved items to send out to families on our waiting lists. 

Without your support, we simply wouldn't be able to help the thousands of babies and children that desperately need us. THANK YOU for being such an important part of Our Village!

Spring has sprung!

Spring has arrived! 🌸 The mornings are still a little fresh in our warehouses, but it’s beautiful to see the days getting longer and at least a little warmer. 

It also means that it’s spring cleaning time! Lots of our wonderful supporters sort through their cupboards at this time of year and donate the items they no longer need. It coincides with the big spike in requests from families in need that we get in the lead up to Christmas, so if spring cleaning is on your to-do list, we’ll gratefully receive your top-quality kids and baby items! 

Check out the list of our most needed items below or the full list of everything we can re-home on our website: www.ourvillage.org.au. Thank you so much for all of your donations of baby and child essentials. 🙏
 

You are making a real difference ...

We recently spoke to Taliya, a mum who has gratefully received support from Our Village in the past, and who recently donated to our Winter Appeal to help other families, too. 🥰 

“Across everything that we've received, it's made a huge impact on my family. When we do fall on hard times, my kids are so grateful for every little thing,” Taliya says.

Her children have received a cot, bedding, clothing bundles, books and toiletries in the past. 

She’s mindful of sharing her gratitude with her children, and helping them to appreciate what they have and how they can help others. 

“I try and get them to understand different aspects of life and not to be so quick to judge because even though we have fallen on hard times, they also know that we're in a better position than some people. And so, making sure that they understand to be grateful for all the things they do have. So generally by the end of the year, any clothes and toys that they don't use that are in a decent condition generally get gifted to other people. Winter time and Christmas are the hardest times for a lot of families.”

“And so for me, it's a good feeling. My kids know what it's like to have nothing, but they also know what it's like to be able to give someone everything, you know, something that they have but someone else might not.” 

💚 Thank you for supporting mums like Taliya. 💚

Friends of Our Village: Geelong Community Foundation

Our Village is built on the commitment and love of community. Our incredible volunteers, goods donors, and financial supporters all come together to show families in need that – even if they are struggling, lack resources, or don’t have a strong network – everyone belongs to a community that cares. It’s the very essence of “it takes a village to raise a child.”

This spirit of giving is beautifully reflected than in the work of the Geelong Community Foundation. A decade ago, in 2015, the Foundation first backed Geelong Mums, helping the charity get off the ground and ensuring vulnerable babies and children received the essential items they need.

Since then, Our Village has been privileged to receive $199,000 in funding from the Foundation to support our work in Geelong. As the need in the region has grown, so too has the Foundation’s generosity, particularly in the past two years. What's more, the Foundation's new CEO, Amy Waters, took time out recently to visit our Geelong warehouse. Amy met with our wonderful volunteers, and took time to understand both our current and future challenges. This thoughtful approach to funding builds not only impact but also strong and sustainable community connection.

A huge thank you to the Geelong Community Foundation – and here’s to the next 10 years of partnership!

Thanks to your support, we have been able to gift over $5 million worth of kids' essentials so far this year! 

During July and August:

💚 2,948 Babies and children were positively impacted by Our Village, with 10,191 essential items re-homed including:

• 85 Cots
• 209 Prams
• 213 Car seats
• 2,074 Clothing bundles
• 897 Book and craft packs
• 536 Linen bundles
• 630 Shoe packs
• 461 Toy bags
• 1,274 Toiletry bags

Wow! Thank you for making this possible Friend!

Helping everyone celebrate book week 

Every August, school kids around Australia look forward to dressing up as their favourite story characters and being part of the annual Book Week celebrations. 📚

To help make sure that every child has the opportunity to participate in this wonderful tradition, Our Village delivered special Book Week packs to children across regional Victoria.

Our dedicated volunteers went the extra mile, searching high and low to find books and matching toys or costumes to create meaningful kits for children at Mildura Connected Beginnings and Bairnsdale Primary School.

Our efforts were supported by students from Christian College Geelong, Bellarine Campus, who visited our Geelong warehouse dressed as their favourite characters with a bus-load of donations.

The students held a ‘silly sock’ day and collected items to help vulnerable babies and children. We were absolutely over the moon to see the amount of toiletries, clothing, underwear, nappies, wipes, books, craft supplies and shoes that were donated!

For families facing tight budgets, participating in Book Week can sometimes feel out of reach – but now, more children will experience the dignity and joy of receiving their very own book and accessory. They’ll walk into school, kinder, or daycare with pride, confidence, and a true sense of belonging.

A massive thank you to our donors and supporters for bringing the spirit of generosity to life!

Volunteer spotlight - Meet Heather! 💚

How did you first hear about Our Village, and what inspired you to get involved? 

I was looking for somewhere to donate a number of baby blankets and playmats that I had sewn, using up various pieces of fabric that my mother and I had collected over the years. 

My wish was to help someone, possibly a teenage mum-to-be. This resonated with me on a personal level with my own mother's experience. I started to ask around, and a number of people mentioned the great work that Our Village does for mothers, babies and children. 

When I arrived with my donation, I was greeted by a friendly staff member in the carpark and felt instantly welcomed. This left me feeling that my small donation would make a difference to someone's life. 

After about 12 months, I found myself retiring and wanting to volunteer some of my time. Given my previous positive experience and that I already knew of the great work they do within the community, I looked into volunteering with Our Village. Once I had completed my induction, I was good to go. By December, I will have been volunteering here for two years. 

Can you share a memorable moment or experience during your time volunteering? 

One day as we were enjoying our morning tea (a great ritual that is part of volunteering here), management shared with us the impact statistics from the previous month. As I predominantly volunteer in the shoes department in Geelong, I was amazed and also a little proud at what our small group had achieved. Hearing the statistics for the whole organisation and the number of children we assisted in that one month across Victoria was another moment that put into perspective for me the importance of the work we do. 

What do you enjoy doing most when you're here? 

I most enjoy working in the shoes department. I get to work with a great team, and together we are ensuring that children have shoes so they can do the things that children should be doing: running, jumping in puddles in their gumboots, putting on a pair of sparkly shoes to wear out and feel special, or a cuddly warm pair of slippers to make them feel cozy.

Thank you for being such a wonderful volunteer Heather! 🥰

Interested in volunteering? Find out more on our website here!

Thank you for your ongoing support , we truly appreciate you being a vital part of Our Village.

If you are looking for another way to support babies and children in need, why not become one of our Ultimate Supporters? Check out more information online – or give our team a call on 1300 789 509. 

We simply couldn't do what we do, without you!

Keep an eye on your inbox for more exciting news and updates soon.

The Our Village Team

P.S. Make sure you're following us on socials for all our updates – hit the links below! ⬇️