How can we help our disaster victims?

[old man emu]

There is no doubt that Australains who have not been directly impacted by the recent fire and flood situations are sympathetic to those who have. Merely say that the impacted are in our thoughts and prayers doesn't seem enough. What can we do?

 

Many victims only have the clothes they stand up in. Should we send clothing? Nice thought, but impractical. I volunteer at a charity shop where we receive bags and bags of donated clothing. It is a daily battle to sort through these donations to classify them and prepare them for display for sale. Even when that is done, we have difficulty in storing them. If we wanted to dontate them, where would we send them, and how?

 

Clothing is not the only thing that these victims need. Where's the bog rolls; the baby nappies, the female hygeine products, the incontinence pads? Did you ever think that these might be more important to some victims than a selection of clothing? 

 

The National Emergency Management Agency https://www.nema.gov.au/  is a Commonwealth agency whose goal is to lead and coordinate national action and assistance across the emergency management continuum. To do this the agency works with State and Federl entities, Charitable organisations and leaders of the Public Sector to get aid to victims of disasters in the immediate aftermath and later in the recovery period.

 

The best way for individuals to give help is by donating money to funds properly set up through charitable organisations and the like where monetary donations can be lodge into accounts managed by the major banks. The warning that must be given about donating is to never donate following a request made via a communication medium. If you want to donate, it is best to walk into a bank yourself. 

[facthunter]

Armed Or Just Bluff them?  Nev

[Dexter Watson]

You’re absolutely right—sending random items can often create more work for relief organizations than help. Monetary donations through established charities or government-coordinated funds really are the most effective way to support victims. It allows agencies like NEMA to buy exactly what’s needed—baby nappies, hygiene products, bedding—without clogging warehouses with unusable or duplicate items. Even a small contribution can go a long way in helping people get back on their feet.

 

 

 

[onetrack]

A mate volunteers at Vinnys in Bunbury a couple of days a week, sorting incoming secondhand goods and clothing. He says they're overwhelmed with secondhand stuff, and fill about 3 big skip bins a week with stuff they can't use or pass on.

 

Most of what they bin is quite usable, but they have no room to store it, not enough people to oversee sales, giveaways or deliveries of it, and very few people actually want the smaller household items. So it goes to landfill.

 

The Chinese have a lot to answer for, we should send all the unwanted Chinese crap back to where it came from, and stop creating massive landfills here.

[red750]

We used to regularly receive coloured plastic bags in which to put unwanted clothing, shoes, etc. to be collected for passing on to needy people. it's been some time since we last received one. We have a lot of my late wife's clothes which may not be top fashion house stuff, but are in good condition and may be of use to someone who was left with only the clothes they stood up in when their house was burned in a bushfire or washed away in a flood. But they have been on a clothes rack or in a wardrobe for four years, and washing then is a large task for my daughter, and dry cleaning is expensive. It's the logistics of getting them to those in need which is the problem.

[Marty_d]

2 hours ago, onetrack said:

 

The Chinese have a lot to answer for, we should send all the unwanted Chinese crap back to where it came from, and stop creating massive landfills here.

They're only selling it because we're buying it. I'd say the fault lies with us.

[facthunter]

It's hard to find Much else. There's still SUTTONS drills and adjustable reamers. The ONLY adjustable reamers worth buying. Nev

[old man emu]

5 hours ago, onetrack said:

He says they're overwhelmed with secondhand stuff,

That is the irony of Charity. All Vinnies, LifeLine, Red Cross and Op Shops suffer from the generosity of people. I'm battling the same problem in the OP Shop I work at. Too much stuff donated; not enough staff to sort it, and not enough demand for what is put out for sale. I'm bagging up good clothing to be sent to Africa. Doing that is better than sending it to landfill. Also, our tip operator (local council) does not charge to tip. The Metropolitan charities lose bucket of money paying tip fees.

 

It's bad when you live in a town with an aged population. Boomers are dropping off the perch and their kids are cleaning out theie houses and dropping off what they don't want to charity shops. Just think of the wedding gifts you received at you first wedding. Nowadays, no one has dinner parties so there is no need for fancy dinner sets or glassware. Then over the years people collect stuff like Tupperware and cookware. You can't sell that sort of stuff, but people keep donating it. We can't sell electrical items because we don't have anyone to Test 'n' Tag each item, but we continue to get it donated. You'd be surprised at how many items of clothing still have the original retailer's tags on them.

 

I spent today packing up Mum's stuff to remove it from her room where she lived for the past ten years. I packed away CDs, DVDs and casette tapes, as well as their players. Who would want her out-of-date clothing. I have just poured opened jars full of jam down the sink. And there are all her creams, ointments and soaps that can't be given away. And her shoes and underwear. The only thing we can do is to wait until the end of the bushfire season and have a big burn up.