It’s the time of year when a lot of us are making plans for Christmas. We write lists of gift ideas for our loved ones, we plan where to be and who to see and what to eat and drink.

If you would like to include ‘donate to charity’ on your Christmas to-do list then now is your chance.

Share the Dignity is calling on Australians to support women and girls in need this Christmas through their annual #ItsInTheBag Christmas appeal, encouraging people to donate a bag and drop it off at their local Bunnings store between Friday 19 November and Sunday 28 November 2021.

Local Registered Nurse and Share the Dignity ‘Charity Queen Northern Rivers District’ Lee Millward, has an epic Christmas to-do list which includes co-ordinating volunteers from Grafton up to Tweed, out to Casino and Kyogle.

Lee suggests buying a cheap, practical tote bag and adding the essential items.

“We ask for three types of bag – adult, teen and mum and bub bags. The essential items are a toothbrush and toothpaste, shampoo., soap or body wash, sanitary items like pads or tampons. If it’s an adult bag you could include pads or incontinence pads. Mum and bubs bags are good for maternity pads,” Lee explained.

“You can add bits and bobs, things like hand towels, tissues, hand sanitiser….anything you think these girls and women going through hard times would like. You can even add a card or note.

“Basically, this is going to be their Christmas gift. For some, it will be their own only Christmas gift.”

Lee Millward (R) with Deb Thompson from Rekindling the Spirit

Lee has been active with the charity since 2019 when she heard about the annual campaign which is now in its seventh year.

“I donated bags when I heard about the charity and I got my workmates to donate stuff. I think we donated all together 30 handbags and then when I went to Bunnings to drop them off, I thought, I could do this.”

The initiative aims to ensure that every woman and girl spending Christmas in a domestic violence shelter receives the basic essentials.

“In 2020 I joined up as a volunteer. I’m the Bunnings Buddy for Lismore so I coordinate all the people that are going to be doing the pick-ups in the Lismore area.

“It was very different seeing what you’ve got to do with the handbags once they’ve been donated as opposed to donating them yourself. We have to check all the contents, you can’t put aerosols, no food, no razors or sharp things. No medicines or anything like that.”

“Other things are a bonus, whatever you think someone would like to use like makeup or lip balm, everything has to be in original packaging.

“If you wouldn’t give your best friend this bag, then you wouldn’t donate it,” Lee explained.

items to include in a donated bag

Share the Dignity have other ways to donate which include sponsoring a bag if you’d like to contribute but are not able to do the footwork to gather items and get to your local Bunnings.

Donations of essential items are also welcome without a bag.

“If you don’t have a handbag you can still donate products just in a plastic shopping bag and volunteers log them as extra items and sort them into bags ready to donate,” our Charity Queen explained.

“It’s really worthwhile, for some women they don’t even own a handbag, or it might be the only thing they have when they leave the house,” she added.

Lismore Bunnings Operations Manager Ash Waring, said that he and his team were excited to be supporting Share the Dignity again this year.

"Our team and customers love getting behind this campaign and we encourage anyone who can drop off a bag in our colourfully decorated collection box at the front of the store from the 19th to the 28th of November," Ash said.

All the donations collected from Bunnings stores in the Northern District stay within the area and are distributed to organisations registered for support. Rekindling the Spirit, St Vincent de Paul and Social Futures are some examples.

“If there’s any charities out there that would like to receive donations they can register online too. A lot of them don’t realise that it’s available to them,” Lee said.

With COVID-19 pushing more vulnerable women and girls below the poverty line, and at greater risk of homelessness and domestic violence, #ItsInTheBag donations are in high demand.

Share the Dignity Founder and Managing Director, Rochelle Courtenay, said the charity was preparing for another donation deficit in 2021.

“We clearly saw the impact of COVID-19 last year – we received 50,000 fewer bags in 2020, compared to 2019. This just shows the strain on those who might not be able to donate at this time, but the need is still there – in fact, we are seeing more vulnerable women and girls looking for support than ever before.

“We’re expecting to have more than 200,000 charity requests this year – this is the most we’ve ever received and fulfilling this will be no easy feat. That’s why we launched our Sponsor A Bag initiative, to give supporters the option to donate virtually if they are unable to visit their local Bunnings drop-off point,” Courtenay said.

Founder and Managing Director of Share the Dignity, Rochelle Courtenay

Local volunteers – known as Sheros – are still needed in the Northern Rivers and can access information and register to join at the website.

“We definitely need more volunteers in this area, especially around Byron, Mullum, Tweed and Ballina, it’s not too late to volunteer. You just go to the link on the website and sign up then someone will be in touch,” volunteer coordinator Lee explained.

“This is my second year as the Bunnings Buddy and I love it…. I’m very passionate about it. I find it very satisfying. I’m not doing it to get any accolades, it’s what I’ve always done, helping people, and I get to meet really nice people.”

To find out more about how to donate some time or bags, visit Share the Dignity.

https://www.sharethedignity.org.au/itsinthebag