Orange Sky Australia

A big hello 👋 from our volunteers (left to right) Wendy, Leslie, Abby and Lynda! The team at Power Neighbourhood House in Ashwood, Melbourne have been busy generating impact and supporting friends doing it tough with around six loads of washing every single week 🧺

Late last month, we had the privilege of sharing the Orange Sky story with an incredible and talented network at the annual REDARC Electronics conference.

Since 2021, we've been proud to work in partnership with REDARC, a company that shares our passion for innovation and community impact. Together, we've been focused on minimizing our environmental footprint, enhancing the reliability of our vehicles, and uplifting the experience of our amazing volunteers.

We are thrilled to wish REDARC a happy birthday as they celebrate 45 years of powering communities! 🧡👏

Erica (pictured here) is the original and only employee who runs our Doomadgee service which has been in operation since October 2023. Since the shift started, Erica has worked with the community and the Doomadgee Aboriginal Shire Council completing 888 washes and 716 conversation hours over 101 shifts!

After each shift, Erica sends through a 'shift journal entry' to our HQ team, which provides a beautiful glimpse into the people behind the washes, and the stories that bring them to our bright orange van.

"Today's been really great, its great to see all the little goonawoona's (kids) with their mums at the Orange Sky's truck running around or crawling, all the ladies come and have a good yarn, in our culture we share and care for one another's goonawoon's"

"Wow this day was full on, but loved it, bigga mobba washing, I was so happy to have a yarn with everyone. The babies even knows me now, they've even got Orange teddy bears and pillows and they're names are Erica Orange Sky"

Orange Sky is coming to the community of Bunbury!

One of our amazing volunteers, Ian and his partner Sonia, have been busy spreading the word by hand-delivering flyers into local mailboxes. Last weekend they were spotted walking the streets, painting the town orange and making sure everyone knows we’re here to help. 💌

If you are interested in volunteering to help people experiencing hardship with access clean laundry and connection, sign up today orangesky.org.au/volunteer

Earlier this year, over 70 students and staff at Hillbrook in Brisbane participated in The Sudsy Challenge, turning the school into a sea of orange. For three days, they wore the same clothes during PE lessons, lunchtime, and more, raising essential funds to keep our vans running and spark conversations about homelessness.

Hillbrook and Orange Sky both value community deeply. Hillbrook explained, "Community is our most valuable resource, and taking part in The Sudsy Challenge was a perfect way to extend it further."

Thanks to their generosity and enthusiasm, Hillbrook raised an impressive $15,400!

Beyond fundraising, Acting Principal Mark noted that the challenge offered students greater insight into homelessness. “We still had comforts that those experiencing homelessness lack, but it helped us appreciate what we have and understand how to support those in need.”

Orange Sky relies on the support of schools, organisations, and teams nationwide. The Sudsy Challenge is a powerful way to engage teams in meaningful fundraising and conversations, get your team onboard this September https://bit.ly/3zucDxQ

We’re thrilled to announce Orange Sky’s newest partnership with Complete Home Filtration! 🤝 We believe in the power of collaboration to drive positive change, connecting with our community and supporting essential needs.

These shared values make this collaboration even more meaningful and we can't wait to see the impact this partnership will generate for our Perth services 🧡 A huge thank you to CEO Suzanne Dodds, General Manager Darren Glass and the whole team at Complete Home Filtration for believing in our mission of positively connecting communities!

A massive thank you to the The Grand Lodge of Freemasons SA & NT for their incredible $150,000 donation to support our operations in South Australia and the Northern Territory🧡

Thanks to their generosity, we'll be able to expand our services and continue providing a place for clean laundry, warm showers, and meaningful conversations to those who need it most. This donation is about more than just clean clothes—it's about building a stronger community and we couldn't be more grateful for your support!

A huge shoutout to Skipper for keeping The Sudsy Challenge fresh and clean with their awesome laundry sheets! 🧼 Thanks to you, our participants are ready to wash away the stigma around homelessness and make a real difference—one load at a time! 🧺 We’re over the moon to have you on board. 🧡

A huge thank you to our good mates at Bank of Queensland - BOQ for their incredible effort during 'Orange Sky July' 🍊. They've raised an amazing $200,000, which will provide over 8,400 loads of laundry for people in need across our communities.

Your support makes a real difference, BOQ. Thanks loads! 🧡🧺

Tom, an Orange Sky volunteer, reflects on his journey volunteering with Orange Sky and shares one perception that has changed for him.

“One of the perceptions that’s changed for me, is just how easy it is for you to find yourself in a situation where you need help. Some people are one or two pay cheques away from needing a hand, needing someone to help wash their clothes.” said Tom.

Homelessness is closer than many of us think and as more and more Aussies are forced into homelessness, we need your support today to make a greater impact in communities across Australia tomorrow, https://bit.ly/4bWzDms

Today marks the start of National Homelessness Week, a key moment in our calendar at Orange Sky, to raise awareness to help those doing it tough in our community.

In the wake of financial hardship, we aren’t just seeing people experiencing homelessness and those who don’t have a safe place to sleep at night. We are seeing families, retirees, students, middle-aged women and even people with current employment coming to us for help, resulting in a 21% increase in the demand for our services since the last financial year, right across the country.

Aussies are doing it tough, with many forced to choose between basic essential needs just to get by, as evidenced by data below.

To support the growing number of Aussies experiencing homelessness and hardship, in the last financial year, we launched services in five new locations. In addition to the brand new services, we launched 36 new shifts in already existing services. As more and more Aussies are forced into homelessness, we want to be there and with your support, we can be.

Please, donate today: https://bit.ly/4bWzDms

The newest Orange Sky laundry pod has officially been up and running for just over one month in Bendigo, offering free laundry services and genuine, non-judgemental conversations for local people experiencing homelessness and hardship.

Our dedicated volunteer team have been hard at work, connecting with people and providing much-needed support and connection to those doing it tough in Bendigo, despite the chilly weather 🥶

A huge thank you to our local volunteer team driving this service and to The Salvation Army Bendigo. We're excited for our next service launches in Ballarat, VIC, and Bunbury, WA which are currently recruiting for volunteers! If you're local to Ballarat and Bunbury and are keen to make a difference in your local community, please head to our website to apply to be an Orange Sky volunteer today! https://www.orangesky.org.au/volunteer

We're thrilled to see the impact of our Orange Sky pod at the Kempsey Neighbourhood Centre! This pod is more than just a laundry service; it's a testament to our commitment to community well-being. By collaborating with local service providers, we're able to deliver essential support to those who need it most.

As the Kempsey Neighbourhood Centre shared, "The presence of an Orange Sky pod at the Kempsey Neighbourhood Centre has provided a tangible resource that represents a shared commitment to collective well-being. The pod complements the range of services we provide perfectly, which are all geared towards fostering a sense of community and support with vulnerable people in practical and meaningful ways."

Our partnership with the Kempsey Neighbourhood Centre is a shining example of how we can come together to make a real difference. Thank you to everyone involved in helping us create positive connections and support for our friends doing it tough.

Say hello to our first volunteer in Bendigo... Wendy!

When we put a call out to the community earlier this year, she jumped at the chance to help locals doing it tough with access to free washing facilities and a place to connect.

When asked, Wendy said she was motivated by our mission and the practical help we provide. "I despair at the thought of people being homeless, particularly in winter. I don't know what I can do to help with homelessness in general but volunteering with Orange Sky is a small way that I can help."

We are so excited to have Wendy and over 13 passionate people like her volunteering their time to positively connect the community of Bendigo on our six orange chairs 🧡

Jan, her husband and their beloved little chihuahua 'Vodka', have called Darwin home for the past 10 years, but for the past eight years, they have lived on a bus without a permanent home.

Jan first discovered Orange Sky when she and her husband found themselves without a washing machine and were in need of finding a place where they could regularly wash their belongings.

Before she found Orange Sky, washing clothes was a struggle for Jan. "I would put them in a bucket and drive around, but it was hard to find water, so they didn't get properly rinsed,” she says. “It's the best thing that could ever happen to Darwin to have Orange Sky come and help people out like us.”

A lovely pic snapped by one of our volunteers, giving us a glimpse inside the Peninsula City Church Winter Shelter Shift in Melbourne on a chilly winters night. Thank you to all volunteers who donate their time, energy and skills to positively connect the community day and night!

📸 Melbourne, Kulin Nation

To mark NAIDOC Week, some of our Orange Sky team members attended the Musgrave Park NAIDOC Family Fun Day in Brisbane, giving locals a glimpse into the service we provide across metro, regional and remote places across Australia.

The day was full of impactful conversations and connections with local community members and other organisations providing valuable services. A special thanks to Musgrave Park Family Fun Day for having us and our friends at Fruit2WorkAus for their fruitful donations 🍊🧡

For more information about this years event, head to https://www.musgraveparkffd.com

To close out NAIDOC Week 2024, we wanted to celebrate and acknowledge the incredible group of employees that deliver our shifts in remote communities everyday.

Their commitment to connection and passion for creating sustainable change in their local communities ensures that our washers continue to spin, and conversations keep flowing around our six orange chairs.

Take a look at some of the many faces behind our service 🧡

Yesterday our remote vehicle was part of The Healthy Skin Day in Aurukun! The community had a chance to come check out the van and engage with other services.

Thanks loads to the Aurukun Shire Council, Torres and Cape Health Service and RESET for letting our bright orange truck show up at the event 🧡

Connection to Country is an important aspect of our 13 remote services, spanning across QLD, NT and WA. Each week, local staff don their orange shirts, providing a reliable and open space to connect and yarn together on our six orange chairs.

Our service can be closely connected to the analogy of a fire, with its foundations built from our supporters, volunteers and HQ team. In addition, our washing machines act as a fuel that powers our service , but the conversations are what fan the flame.

Beyond our shifts, Orange Sky is committed to tending the fires of initiatives across the organisation. Read our latest blog to find out more: https://bit.ly/3S1KOmT

Happy National NAIDOC Week!

This year's theme 'Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud & Proud' honours the enduring strength and vitality of First Nations culture – with fire a symbol of connection to Country, to each other and to the rich tapestry of traditions that define Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Orange Sky is extremely proud to work alongside communities to help improve access to laundry facilities and a place for connection and conversation. We feel very privileged to be part of these communities and work with some amazing people who we are continually learning from.

This NAIDOC Week, and beyond, we celebrate and thank those who are 'keeping the fires burning' in communities across Australia, creating a brighter future for Orange Sky and people who access our service.

Our friends at QBE Insurance Australia kicked some major goals over the weekend to support their charity partners, including Orange Sky. Their Goals for Good event was held during the AFL clash at the SCG between the Sydney Swans and Fremantle Dockers where they donated $3,000 for each of the 14 goals the Swans scored. After the game, the overall donation was rounded up to $75,000, with $12,500 of it pledged to Orange Sky.

Thanks loads to QBE for their generosity and continued support of our mission to positively connecting communities around Australia.

What are you up to this September?!

We hope your calendar is clear because...registrations are now officially open for The Sudsy Challenge for 2024! 🎉

That's right, it's time to grab your teammates, keep your kit on for three days and start conversations about homelessness along the way, all while helping to raise funds and awareness for Orange Sky.

As we continue expanding our services to meet the increasing need across our communities, we hope you’ll pull on an orange shirt with us to not change clothes but change lives.

Join us today! https://bit.ly/3zucDxQ