As the chill of winter sets in across the Northern Rivers, hundreds of locals will face the cold without a safe place to sleep. Families, older residents and even full-time workers are bedding down in cars, tents or temporary shelters and local support services are overwhelmed.
This winter, Songs for Shelter: Winter Warmer is asking our community to act. With your help, they are aiming to raise $50,000 to support those doing it tough. Every donation helps fund the basics - warm meals, clean clothes, dry bedding and emergency accommodation - through four local organisations working on the front line: Fletcher Street Cottage, Fred's Place, Pottsville Beach Neighbourhood Centre and Murwillumbah Community Centre. And in return, you get to give something more than money. Add a song that makes you feel safe, loved or at home to our growing Songs for Shelter playlist, a community soundrack of home, heart and healing.
"Songs for Shelter is not only a fundraising campaign, but a reminder that even small acts of kindness can bring real warmth to someone's life. Every donation tells a person in crisis: you are not alone and your community cares." - Kate Love, Communication Manager, Byron Community Centre
How you can help:
"There are so few affordable homes, little public housing and the shelters are full," says Fiona Hunt from Murwillumbah Community Centre. "Campaigns like Songs for Shelter are essential. They help us provide the basics when people need them most."
Local demand for emergency assistance has surged over the past year, with community centres across the region seeing more people than ever before walking through their doors. Rising rents, limited public housing and the cost of living crisis are pushing more individuals and families to the brink, and winter only sharpens the need.
"We know times are tough for many right now, but even a $25 donation can help provide a hot meal or clean clothes to someone doing it tough this winter," Kate adds. "It's practical, it's powerful and it's how we show up for each other as a community."
The Songs for Shelter: Winter Warmer campaign, led by charity Dharma Care, runs from 1st June to 31st August with all donations going directly to support people in our region who need help this winter.
To donate click: Songs for Shelter - Winter Warmer - Dharma Care
