Outreach Through Offerings
The Cathedral's Outreach through Offerings program began in February 2005.
It aims to widen the scope of our concerns, of our prayers and of our giving, by becoming involved with projects to relieve human need, alternately in Brisbane, elsewhere in Australia and overseas.
January 2012
Sleeping rough is tough..... Street Swags.
"The Street swags are about keeping people alive, long enough, for the community to take responsibility for their own" - Jean Madden
In 2005, high school teacher, Jean Madden, had just moved into her new unfurnished house and, lying in her own sleeping bag, watched a documentary on homelessness Jean was horrified that in this country so many people were sleeping rough and having to deal with all the health problems that come with sleeping on the streets.
Jean initially looked at swags for the homeless but they weren't suitable – too big, too heavy and they looked like bedding. After consulting homeless people, she set about designing something new that would meet their needs.
The result is a sleeping bag with room for extra belongings. The street swag is made of super lightweight waterproofed canvas with a high-density foam mattress. It offers its users a degree of comfort, warmth and protection from the weather. Designed for those living on the streets, its discreet appearance and camouflage colours, offer some safety for those who need to be invisible; this is particularly important for women and children living on the streets.
The design of the Street Swag won Jean the INDEX Award 2009: People's Choice Award in Copenhagen, the largest design awards in the world. It is a carry bag by day and a basic bed and shelter by night, designed to be incredibly discreet so as not to identify people as homeless. So far over 19,000 street swags have been given away to the homeless in Australia.
Locally, Street Swags are manufactured at Woodford Correctional Centre and Grafton Correctional Centre. They are then transported to Nudgee College where students insert the foam mattress, roll the swag and package them ready for dispatch. Other schools make hygiene packs and blankets and groups such as 'Knit4charity' make beanies and scarves. The Nudgee students pack these extra items into the bag section of the swag.
Street Swags cost $60.
Can we as a community provide 15 swags?
Cathedral Outreach envelopes for January are available at the outreach poster in the Narthex, or by phoning Cathedral Reception on 07 3835 2222. Donations of $2 or more to Street Swags are tax-deductible. To obtain a receipt, please write your name and address on the back of your outreach envelope. Street Swags will provide the receipt, probably about mid-March.
More information can be found at www.streetswags.org
