Op shop needs extra helping hands
After an influx of donations a Nambour op shop is asking for help.
Sunshine Coast
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AFTER opening four weeks ago the Nambour Aus Living Support Op Shop is overwhelmed with the generosity of the town’s donations and are looking for an extra set of hands to help.
Aus Living Support CEO Ian Harrison said the store, which aimed to reduce local homelessness and offer support, has opened with a bang.
“It’s exceeding our expectations. We are in our fourth week this week and customers have been flowing in and donations have been coming in with tremendous generosity of the people locally,” he said.
With so many welcomed donations Mr Harrison said they were looking for volunteers between the ages of 14 and 89 who are reasonably able bodied that can help with sorting, pricing and stocking shelves.
“We’ve got some volunteers that have signed up already, but we need some more to come in during the weekdays to help us clear the backlog of donations,” he said.
“We are expecting the donations to increase so if we can get people in now and have them help us and stay on-board that would be fantastic.”
Mr Harrison said if people were looking for a way to give back to the community volunteering at the shop was the perfect way to do it.
“What we want our volunteers to remember is that we are a local charity, started by locals and we are helping locals so anything happening here is a direct impact on the homeless situation within the local community.”
The charity’s profits are used to fund more transitional homes and a rental supplement scheme that helps those on the brink of homelessness.
Mr Harrison said their rental scheme project worked to reduce the strain on other services by preventing homelessness and was creating a lot of excitement among other charities.
“There are no real supplement schemes out there for people that are struggling … but our rental supplement scheme will reduce the amount of people becoming homeless so that’s the one that has got the most excitement,” Mr Harrison said.
The two-fold scheme will pay $200 a week directly to the recipient’s landlord for a guaranteed period of one year before being reassessed.
To donate or volunteer at the op shop contact Aus Living Support via their website. https://www.auslivingsupport.org.au/
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