Kids Giving Back

Like all things in their early stages, the beginning of our chapter has also gone hand in hand with a lot of doubt. Yet nothing has given us as much reassurance that the vision we have for the future of the Deluminators is a good one, than the amazing request by Kids Giving Back, that I be the guest speaker at one of their events for 12/13 year olds.

It naturally took a lot of time for the idea to sink in, that we were actually doing enough good that what we had to say could be beneficial to others. As far back as I can remember, guest speakers have always been such interesting and amazing people, to be one myself seemed obscene and rather ridiculous.

The more I got to know Ruth, the co-founder of this charity, the more I began to understand the areas in which our charities met middle ground and what made what I had to say relevant to their aims. Kids Giving Back was started by Ruth and Carole under the same philosophy that we had started The Deluminators with, that they wanted people - especially the next generation - to understand that what they did could directly help people in need. That they have the power to do good, outside of a gold coin donation. In the years since they begun, Kids Giving Back has run many different events, they organise family trips to volunteer abroad, hold book drives and many other endeavors. The event however, that I had the honour to speak at, is known as 'Cook for Good'.

Cook for Good is an event that Kids Giving Back holds regularly at the 'Big Kitchen' in Bondi - where young kids / teenagers / their families come in and spend the day cooking and packaging meals for the homeless. They then go out and give the meals directly to homeless shelters and places in need. The recipients of Sunday 25th May's meals were:

• Vincentian House, a crisis accommodation and case management service for families and women http://www.vinnies.org.au/vincentian-house-nsw

• Rough Edges, a café for Sydney’s homeless community www.roughedges.org

• Wayside Chapel Cafe provides low cost meals and beverages to the homeless and other community members. While the Cafe's meals are not free, they are extremely affordable. This is consistent with the Wayside philosophy of a hand up rather than a handout.  http://www.thewaysidechapel.com/nomad-cafe.php

• Jewish House, a non-denominational safe haven open to any member of the public in need. Jewish House assists in a wide range of circumstances, ranging from someone requiring a counselling session to requiring a bed and a roof over their head. http://www.jewishhouse.org.au/

• Oasis Youth Support Network provides a place of safety and care where young people can find refuge in the inner city. http://salvos.org.au/oasis/

Due to the amazing work that this organisation does, it was with some nerves that I addressed the group of teenagers and their families and told them of what The Deluminators does, of the power of the written word and its ability to translate to the real world.

Not only this, but Kids Giving back helped us promote our book drive and even held a small collection point at the event, where over 400 books were donated by the attendees.

Thank you so much to Ruth and everyone who attended Cook for Good on May 25. It was an amazing experience and I am so thankful for this incredible opportunity

Sean