Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was honoured last Friday to join with the team at Sewing for Charity Australia to celebrate their fifth birthday. From humble beginnings in the lounge room and garage of founder Cass Gell's house five years ago to now working from dedicated commercial premises in Beenleigh, Sewing for Charity Australia has grown from strength to strength. The charity now has a roster of over 3,000 volunteers and in five years has achieved so much. Since 2015, Sewing for Charity Australia has donated over 180,000 handmade items, including clothing, bags, toiletry kits, gifts, items for premmie babies, cancer care items, quilts, special needs items and much, much more. They are actively supported by over 280 organisations and hundreds of families around Australia, and they divert 25,000 kilos of textile waste from landfill to re-use and repurpose in items they make. They've also hosted classes and workshops for over 200 people at their headquarters, also known as the Sewing Lair, since opening there in June this year. Charities and community organisations such as these are the heart and soul of many of our communities right around the country, particularly in my electorate of Forde, and the Beenleigh community is extremely fortunate and grateful to be home to such a wonderful charity that is giving back so much in so many different ways.