Lou's Place

Charity - Lou's Place (Kings Cross, NSW)
Item/s - Knitted or Crocheted Blankets & Gifts
Links - Facebook | Website

Lou’s Place is a daytime refuge for women in the heart of Kings Cross. Our mission is to provide a safe and welcoming place for women, meeting them at their point of need and supporting them in rebuilding their lives.

Many of the women who come to Lou’s Place are in crisis. Approximately 70% are homeless, most experience mental and/or physical health issues, and nearly all are survivors of neglect and abuse – physical, emotional, sexual, and frequently, substance abuse. Lou’s is a drop-in centre where they can find a safe place to begin restoring their security, stability and self respect. We provide safety on many different levels – from isolation and loneliness, hunger and cold, ill health, the dangers of the street or even the dangers within their own homes.

We have received beautiful patchwork knitted rugs before from knitting groups and we have almost run out so we would love to receive some more. We celebrate our clients' birthdays and sometimes our present is the only gift they receive on their birthday so any handmade gift ideas would be gratefully accepted. For more information please visit our Facebook page and website.

Lupus Association of NSW

Charity - Lupus Foundation of NSW

Item/s - Handmade Quilts, Knitted or Crocheted Blankets featuring 'Butterflies'

The mission of the Lupus Association is to work towards a world without Lupus and associated connective tissue diseases through support education and research into a cure. The Lupus Association is a community based counselling and advocacy service with over 1100 members throughout Australia. We are a non-government, not for profit, self-help organisation. We provide an information and counselling support service for those who have recently been diagnosed as well as those who have been living with lupus for some time.

October is 'Lupus month' and we host a number of fundraising events to try and raise money to assist our members. We would love to have quilts or handmade blankets donated, either knitted or crocheted, to be raffled at one of our events. We request that any items made feature butterflies which is our Lupus symbol. Handmade donations can be sent to The Lupus Association of NSW Inc. PO Box 89, North Ryde 1670 NSW. For more information please visit our Facebook page or website.

Central Coast Kids In Need

Charity - Central Coast Kids In Need

Item/s - Handmade Items for Annual Fundraiser Event

20 years ago in 1993 a local Central Coast mother was staying at Ronald McDonald House with her sick son when the Manager suggested she start a 'volunteer fundraising group' on the Central Coast to help other parents with their accommodation bills. These families all have seriously ill children with prolonged illness (a very large proportion are cancer patients, others with organ transplants and premature babies with life threatening health issues.

Not everyone is aware that there is a $33/night fee to stay at the Ronald McDonald Houses. As an example, following a bone marrow transplant a child needs to be isolated for some 6 weeks before returning home to the Central Coast. Bills for thousands of dollars would financially ruin young families. Central Coast families do not qualify for any government assistance as only families more than 100 kms away from the treating hospital are eligible.

To assist in the ongoing fundraising effort of our volunteers, we host an annual Trivia Night to try and raise funds for the families we support. It would be great to have some handcrafted items donated for prizes so we can raffle off a beautiful quilt, craft hamper or crocheted blanket as examples of ideas. It is our major fundraising function of the year, we have lucky numbers, raffles, silent auctions and also live auctions. Donations can be sent to CCKIN, PO Box 3268, Bateau Bay 2261, NSW. For more information please visit our Facebook page or website: 

The Cat Protection Society of NSW

Charity - The Cat Protection Society of NSW

Item/s - Small Blankets and Cat Toys

Our vision is that every cat has a loving and responsible home. Our mission is to work with the community at all levels for the mutual benefit of cats, people and the natural environment. We do this by finding loving and responsible homes for cats in need, improving the quality of life for cats by educating the community about socially and environmentally responsible cat care, actively working with government and non-government agencies to promote and improve cat welfare and honouring the unique relationship between people and cats.

As our kitty accommodation isn’t too spacious the best size is a 50cm square or a 30cm x 50cm rectangle as these fit well in the apartments. We have some volunteers who knit us slightly smaller blankets, possibly 30cm square and others who make us the 50cm square in polar fleece with a cotton fabric backing. Both are loved by the cats! 

Knitted toys like little mice or balls are fantastic too and are best if they are just made from wool with no eyes or other bits that can be chewed off. Smallish knitted teddies (or animals) are great as well as the cats who get lonely can cuddle up to them. If items are knitted, a basic stitch is best as some of the fancy stitching and wools can cause the kittens and cats to get claws stuck. Please send donations to Nerida Atkin at the adoption centre at 103 Enmore Rd, Newtown 2042, NSW. For more information visit our Facebook page or website: 

Cure Our Kids - The Children's Hospital at Westmead

Charity - Cure Our Kids - The Children's Hospital at Westmead

Item/s - Currently seeking small and large Drawstring Bags

Medical treatment is only half the solution when it comes to childhood cancer. Cure Our Kids is here to help children with cancer and the families who love them with the rest. Our mission has been to restore normalcy to the lives of children with cancer and the families who love them at The Children's Hospital at Westmead. Through programs that address the emotional, social and financial needs of brave young patients and their families, Cure Our Kids empowers families to cope with the many painful challenges that childhood cancer presents.

Cure Our Kids receives no government funding. Our ability to deliver vital support services to families in crisis relies entirely on the support of our generous donors and supporters.

We are currently seeking handmade donations of small drawstring bags for our Bravery Bead program and large Drawstring Library Bags for children on the oncology ward so they can borrow books from the hospital library . Donations can be sent to Cure Our Kids, PO Box 404 Westmead, N.S.W 2145. For more information visit our Facebook page and website: