Looking for ways you can support the local community at this difficult time? There are so many families in need at the moment both due to financial pressures and this cold winter we’re experiencing.
We Care Connect is a Central Coast and Hunter charity that connects community donations to local kids in need. By providing items such as clothing, cots, prams, blankets, bedding and car seats to vulnerable families in the community, this volunteer-run organisation is supporting thousands of children in crisis across the Central Coast. And to continue doing this amazing work, they need your help!
Read on to learn more about how you can help, and to read the story behind this wonderful local charity doing such wonderful things.
95% of what We Care Connect distribute is community donated, and they’re distributing around 2,000 items a week on average at the moment!
How You Can Help
If your children have outgrown some of their lovely things, you can help disadvantaged kids in the local community by passing them on to We Care Connect.
What can I donate?
Families can donate a whole heap of different items including children’s clothing, nappies, sanitary items, blankets and sheets, prams, car seats, high chairs and cots. To see a full list of much-needed items, visit the We Care Connect website.
Where can I drop off my donation?
You can take your donations to the following locations (check their website for opening hours and contact details):
- Kincumber: Kincumber Neighbourhood Centre | 20-22 Kincumber St, Kincumber
- Lake Munmorah: Northern Lakes Neighbourhood Centre | Wednesday only; 1 Colongra Bay Rd, Lake Munmorah
- Gosford: A1 Autoparts | 2 Lindsey St, North Gosford
- Wyoming: Wyoming Community Centre | 147 Maidens Brush Rd, Wyoming
- Tuggerah: Emma McBride MP Office | 204/1 Bryant Drive, Tuggerah
- Woy Woy: Liesl Tesch MP Office | 20 Blackwall Rd, Woy Woy
- Wyong: David Harris MP Office | Shop 4/142 Pacific Hwy, Wyong
- Erina: TyrePower Erina | 22/24 Aston Rd, Erina
Who does We Care Connect help?
We Care Connect is a volunteer-powered local charity rehoming quality preloved children’s essentials with families who need them most. Partnering with professional caseworkers from community centres and family support agencies who provide individual requests for the families they are helping.
Our volunteers prepare support packages tailored to the family’s needs. Support can include clothes, nappies, bedding, cots, prams, car seats, toys, books and other essential items that families of young children need.
The simple act of giving to families in need is at the heart of everything we do. We give donations that make a difference. Our quality standard? “Would I be delighted to receive this for my child?”
Here are some of the people We Care Connect helps…
Young mum-to-be. Seven months pregnant and no family to support her, filling the nursery feels like a distant dream.
Mum and four kids. Have come from interstate escaping domestic violence, leaving all their belongings behind. Living in a small room in a hostel, they now have to rebuild their lives from scratch.
Pensioner Grandparents. Unexpectedly caring for traumatised grandchildren. With no car seats, they cannot even leave the house.
Family living below the poverty line. With a severe illness, dad is unable to work, and mum is taking care of their young children. The family cannot afford critical school items, and this is impacting the children’s education. The eldest child is starting to avoid school so his friends and teachers won’t notice his struggle.
10-year-old birthday boy. Mum wants to celebrate her son but cannot afford to buy presents.
Emergency Foster Carer. A newborn baby is needing urgent care. The foster parents desperately need baby items – a cot, change table and linen.
The story behind We Care Connect
Meet Derryck (pictured above). He believes no child should be disadvantaged because of poverty. So, in 2016 Derryck started We Care Connect with a small group of volunteers.
Since then, We Care Connect has continued to grow, helping over 6,000 kids on the Central Coast. That’s over 150,000+ donations! But it’s not enough. There’s more work to do.
10,000 children live below the poverty line on the Central Coast and this number is doubled in the Hunter Region. We Care Connect’s mission: to reach more local kids and break the barrier of childhood poverty.
Want to donate or become a volunteer?
Contact: Email We Care Connect at [email protected].
Website: Visit the We Care Connect website to see what you can donate or to learn how you can volunteer.
Header Image: We Care Connect
Written By: KATIE STOKES
Founder & Editor
After working in print and online media for more than a decade, Katie launched Playing in Puddles in 2017. A mum of three young boys and local of the Central Coast, Katie loves discovering and sharing all that’s happening in our region.
