Posts

It’s been as cold as -2 degrees some mornings. Imaging sleeping in that, or waking up to that. It’s absolutely horrific and inhumane. Sometimes it can be a while between posts but please know that’s because we’re just so busy getting these bags out and running things behind the scenes. We’ve had around 1800 bags purchased and donated. We’ve got 250 left that we’re rationing out now. That means 1550 life saving sleeping bags have been distributed during this brutal winter thanks to your generosity. These along with other warm items like socks, beanies, scarves and jackets have helped make […]

We are absolutely thrilled to finally be able to announce that The Plate Up Project was chosen as the winner of Sunsuper‘s Dreams For a Better World, round 2. We want to thank each and every one of you voted, shared, Liked and commented. It means the absolute world, not only to us but also to those who will be helped by Plate Up. Now we get to go to the Grand Final and pitch for another possible $30k to offer even more places in Plate Up and help more people out of homelessness. Thank you so much to everyone who made this […]

Melbourne – we need your help! We have some AMAZING NEWS. Out of thousands of applications submitted to the Victorian Government’s ‘Pick My Project’ Community grants initiative, ours was chosen as a finalist. Our project idea is to start an Op Shop that is also a safe place for women to come and talk to someone about how to leave a violent or abusive relationship, ‘before’ it’s too late. We want to get women out before they become another tragic family violence statistic. The Op Shop will have information, numbers, access to counselling and working groups to give women the […]

It was absolutely lovely to have Ali and the team from kikki.K join us for a packing day yesterday. We managed to pack 40 school bags for kids living in crisis accommodation and experiencing homelessness, plus a stack of Gift Box Organic tampons! The School Project is another of our projects and through it we support young people to stay in school. We can provide anything from a fully stocked brand new school bag, to swimwear for swimming lessons, sleeping bags and everything needed for school camps, even bikes and soccer boots for kids who want to continue sports. Thank you so […]

It’s that time again. Winter is fast approaching and sadly every year there are more and more people experiencing homelessness and sleeping on the streets. A sleeping bag can literally save a life, and we’re aiming to get at least 500 of them to save as many lives as possible. 500 is the minimum we need. 1000 would be amazing. Every single one of them is needed. As every year passes we learn more about what’s needed out there on the streets and the biggest call now is for sleeping bags. This year we’re focussing on getting as many sleeping […]

We had a lovely catch up with Graham and the team from the Fr Bob Maguire Foundation and the lovely Natalie from Orange Sky Australia last night at Peanut Farm. These beautiful humans help deliver your sleeping bags out directly to our friends sleeping rough. With so many people needing support these days it’s crucial we team up with like-minded and genuine organisations such as these guys to increase our reach. We saw around 30 bags go out last night and both groups have many more on hand to pass on to people they meet along the way. The services offered at this outreach […]

We were in Perth this week spending time with the team from the Perth Homeless Support Group. Ron and Michael from PHSG have an incredible team behind them and so some amazing work connecting with people experiencing homelessness in the Perth area. We donated a stack of much needed sleeping bags from our recent sleeping bag drive and joined the team for a Sunday morning street catch up. It was was an incredible day. We’re super proud to be connected with this inspiring group of amazing humans. — with Donna Zen and Ron Reid.

Brownie is a brave and loyal companion who looks after his human, Jodie, and protects her as they live on the streets. Brownie was sick recently and needed urgent vet help. His Mum took him to Lort Smith, where he received amazing care, but vet care is expensive and Jodie was left struggling to pay the bill. So we decided to do a fundraiser to see if we could help out, and in a matter of hours we had enough to take care of Brownies vet bill so his Mum had one less thing to worry about. It was so […]

How do you find employment when you’re homeless? How do you get a job, or even get to a job interview when you’re sleeping in a park or under a bridge and you don’t even have clean clothes or a phone? How do you get past the barriers homelessness brings when you have absolutely no support? Well, we created The Plate Up Project to address all of these barriers and we are so proud to announce our partnership with Kinfolk Cafe on Bourke Street along with the Left Bank Melbourne to create an amazing all round practical and educational experience […]

This is a bit long (as usual!), but we’d love you to read to the end. Today we employed two new women to help us pack tampons at the warehouse. One of these ladies lives in a tent. Can you tell which one? It’s impossible. It’s also impossible to tell her apart from everyone else walking down the street. It’s impossible to know what she’s been through and why she’s sleeping in a tent tonight. I can tell you this though, she’s amazing and incredible and one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. I love being around her. She […]

We are absolutely thrilled and so very proud to announce we have partnered with Left Bank Melbourne to continue our work with The Plate Up Project. Our participants will be heading to Left bank Melbourne for work experience on completion of Plate Up, plus receive tuition and guidance from Left Bank Melbourne’s top chefs along their Plate Up journey. We are so incredibly grateful for this support and would like to thank Eddie and the team at Left Bank Melbourne for their continued support.