On Days for Girls

I have been getting lots of enquiries about this campaign and more lately especially that there are chapters of Dress A Girl Around the world in the US who have established partnerships with Days for Girls that I have decided to do a thorough research and analysis if it is feasible for me to distribute kits together with the dresses. Here is the information that I have gathered.

1. Days for Girls’ distribution is centralized. If anyone wants to volunteer to distribute and/or handcarry kits at your own expense , you need to fill-up a form requesting for kits and provide information including destination and the group you will be serving. The request I believe will be filled by the nearest days for girls chapter or sourced somewhere else if not available in your nearest location but you will have to pay for the cost of transporting the kits from the source to your location.
2. The kit includes other items not just the pads and would cost  $30.00(US) each if you are requesting for a sample and also you will need to pay for the cost of sending the sample kits to your location. 
3. To request for 75 kits - the whole weight of the 75 kits is about 22 kilos (from here you can more or less calculate how each kit weighs).

This campaign is no doubt an excellent idea (environmentally friendly as well so you get to help save the earth) especially that I know that the recipients of the dresses I distribute are more or less the same recipients of these kits - the disadvantaged teens - but only if you are financially stable. Although the kits are free, the cost of transporting the kits is where the problem is especially if you consider the weight. Also, if my understanding is correct, I still have to provide a bar of soap to include in each of the kit before actual distribution. Dress a Girl Australia is a self-funded community work where it relies on market sales, on-line store, a few donations here and there from generous donors who do not require tax receipts, friends and work colleagues. It does not have big-name sponsors as other non-profit organizations have and because I am just a regular person trying to make a difference to make this world a better place in my own small way I have no big-time contacts who could possibly help shoulder the cost of distributing the kits. Come to think of it I dont think I even know (personally) really rich people. Maybe rich in heart but not rich as in financially rich. :-)

Today, I sent an email to their distribution centre requesting for a purchase of 2 sample kits which I wanted to send to a couple of locations/contacts who I believe can possibly do the distribution on my behalf and help spread awareness of the campaign in remote areas. But on my way home on the train I started to make mental calculations. Two sample kits at $30 each plus the cost of a self-addressed express post envelope to make sure I get the parcel, the amount I was intending to pay I was thinking I can actually send 75 dresses to disadvantaged kids in Uganda. It was kind of a sad calculation but at the same time I was trying to be practical. When I got home I decided to send an email cancelling my purchase of sample kits and also decided that unless circumstances change (maybe I get lucky and have some money when I wake up in the morning :-)), I will not be able to establish a partnership to distribute days for girls kits.

In my humble opinion distributing dresses and kits will not be sustainable. I only get a handful of volunteers who are willing to handcarry dresses because these individuals are just like me without sponsors and offering to handcarry is their way of helping make a difference. Not everyone is willing to handcarry because of the cost of excess baggage they have to pay plus the cost of customs duties they sometimes are required to pay at the country of destination. In other countries it is a different story because it is part of their customs and culture to do volunteer work and they travel in groups.

So for those of you who have been enquiring about this, although the flesh is willing, the pocket is weak. For 22 kilos worth of 75 kits for 75 girls, I can actually distribute an equivalent of almost 300 dresses and that is 300 girls getting to own at least one dress. And I know that these 300 girls will have the time of their life wearing a dress they can call their own. It is a sad conclusion but practicality prevails. I will leave the kits for other people to volunteer to distribute.

For those who still wants to make pads, which I would do if I had the time I would recommend you send your finished products to the nearest days for girls location in your area. They will then include or allocate them in the kits they make and distribute them on your behalf. Thank you.

To check where your nearest Days for Girls location, please click here.

Feedback from NSW Meals on Wheels

Sharing with you an email I received today from Sanuja of NSW Meals on Wheels regarding the Valentine Cards I sent them to give to their clients on Valentines Day.

For a larger and more readable version of this letter, please click here.

Thank you to Elaine Klein, Sarah Tanmahapran, Carolyn Walker and Two flew over the cuckoo's nest for their wonderful and generous contributions.

And thank you so much to NSW Meals on Wheels for giving me the opportunity to brighten their clients' day on Valentines Day. It was a pleasure packing up and sending those cards knowing that it will bring great smiles especially to those who are isolated. 

More Cards for Valentines Day (NSW Meals on Wheels)

An additional 100 cards were sent to NSW Meals on Wheels through the kindness and generosity of Two Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest.

That is another 100 beaming happy faces this coming Valentines Day. What a great day it would be I hope for those who will be lucky enough to receive one of these cards.

Thank you Two Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Dress Distribution #51 - Children of Miwani Kenya (c/o Pastor Joshua Atieno) Parcel 1B

This is Parcel #2 of 2 parcels for Miwani Kenya c/o Pastor Joshua Atieno of Widows of Africa. This time it is a parcel of 41 pairs of shorts, 8 boys t-shirts, 3 girls' t-shirts, 2 pairs of tops/pair of shorts and 26 dresses. Hope they get to Kenya in time for Easter.
Here is the parcel -

and here are the contents of the parcel -

made possible by the following donors -
1) Betty Barrett/Betty Paull
2) Sharyn Paull
3) Sandra Turnbull
4) Ladies of Kapunda Sewing Group with a sponsorship by Bonnie and girls t-shirts
5) Loris Pullen
6) Virginia Schrapelli
7) Monika Osvald
8) Di Menzel
9) Sash Hinton (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
10) Louise Wright (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
11) Sylvia Lowe (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
12) Linda Smyth (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
13) heyboom for the laces
14) T-shirts by Dress A Girl Australia
15) Dress A Girl Australia

No undies included and donor of one pair of girl's top/pair of shorts cannot be identified.
If this pair happen to be yours, let me know.

To see larger images of the contents of this parcel, please click here.  For more details on this distribution (and also at a later stage when feedback is received) please click here or click on the special 'Dress Distribution' tab which you can find at the top of this page.

Thank you so much to all the donors who made this parcel possible. Thank you for the materials, time, money and effort you all spent in making these dresses being given to the less fortunate children of Miwani Kenya . Your kindness and generosity is very much appreciated. Thank you.

If you feel the need to enquire about this distribution, please feel free to send an email to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. Thank you.

Feedback from Thailand (Baan Jai Dee)

Received this message today about the parcel of dresses I sent to Baan Jai Dee Thailand in early January this year.

For a larger and more readable version of this image, please click here. For the article on dress distribution, please click here. 

Thank you Sandie.

Check this out

Check out what I received from work today. My community champion pin.

Also, to those who were following the challenge I joined 4 weeks ago, yesterday was the last day of the Habit Factor challenge and today was the final submission of the habit tracking chart. Now I need to write my 500-word essay on my experience regarding the challenge to complete the requirement. The most challenging of all the habits I chose to track was the 10,000 steps a day as not everyday was a good day for walking. The challenge might be over but my tracking goes on.

Donors of 12 pairs of shorts identified

Finally identified the donors of the 12 pairs of shorts I have included in the Malabon Manila parcel 1A/Distribution #54. Six of the pairs were donated by Annette Norley and the other six pairs by Frances Cornish. Thanks Ladies!

Dress Distribution #54 - Children of Malabon Manila (c-o Norie Bordador) Parcel 1B

This is parcel #2 of 3 parcels allocated to the children of Malabon, Manila to be sent to Norie Bordador at the end of February. It is a parcel of 85 dresses of various sizes between 1 to 14 to be distributed with the assistance of Sr Ma Rosalina Luzon, the MCJ Coordinator and to be done at the Sto Nino Chapel and Mission Center in Malabon City. 
Here is the parcel -

and here are the contents of the parcel all 85 of them -

made possible by the following donors -
1) Golden girls Kay, Pauline, Betty & Julie
2) Hiroko Price
3) Womens Shed, Tamworth Regional Craft Centre 
4) Sandra Turnbull
5) Ladies of Kapunda Sewing group
6) Two Bettys Betty Barrett and Betty Paull
7) Toni Kirkpatrick
8) Meredith Cain (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
9) Linda Smyth (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
10) Sash Hinton (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
11) Monika Osvald (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
12) Di Menzel
13) Flor dela Cruz (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
14) Louise Wright (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
15) Sylvia Lowe (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
16) Sarah Tanmahapran
17) Keren Jacobs
18) Jolly Sun (my mum) (sewn by Dress A Girl Australia)
19) Dress A Girl Australia

No undies were included in this parcel, all dress donors identified.

To see larger images of the contents of this parcel, please click here. For more details on this distribution (and also at a later stage when feedback is received) please click here or click on the special 'Dress Distribution' tab which you can find at the top of this page.

Thank you so much to all the donors who made this parcel possible. Thank you for the materials, time, money and effort you all spent in making these dresses being given to the less fortunate children in Malabon Manila . Your kindness and generosity is very much appreciated. Thank you.

I also would like to extend my heartfelt thank you to Norie Bordador for organizing and coordinating all these distributions, making sure that they get to the children in need. Thank you Norie. Your efforts are very much appreciated.

If you feel the need to enquire about this distribution, please feel free to send an email to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. Thank you.

Dresses to Zambia by the Ladies of Kapunda Sewing Group

Deborah Parish of the Ladies of Kapunda Sewing Group has advised that they have sent 145 dresses, 15 quilts, 26 pairs of boys shorts, baby clothes and some fabric bags for Zambia c/o Julie Argent of Zoe's Hope a not-for-profit organization aiming to meet the needs of vulnerable children in Zambia. 

Thank you to everyone who made these items possible and for allowing Dress A Girl Australia to include the items as part of its distribution count. It is much appreciated.

Valentine Cards for NSW Meals on Wheels

Off the parcel went this morning filled with almost 150 Valentine cards....on its way to NSW Meals on Wheels to distribute to recipients of NSW Meals on Wheels' services this coming Valentines Day and hopefully will bring many smiles to their faces especially to those who are isolated.
This is the parcel -

filled with these variety of Valentine cards -

I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the following ladies who found it in their hearts to share with a very small group of members of the community something special on Valentines Day and I hope that the day will bring full of happiness and love to everyone. A glimpse of heaven. 
1) Elaine Klein
2) Carolyn Walker
3) Sarah Tanmahapran

And a special thank you to Sanuja of NSW Meals on Wheels for giving me the opportunity to share these cards with their clients. Thank you so much.

Donation Acknowledgement FY14/1 #3 - 32 Dresses from Suzanne

When I received an email from Suzanne Nixon requesting for some labels I got so excited about it. Last year she sent me dresses with something special inside each pocket. A mini doll and I was hoping that she would do the same this year which she did. She sent 32 dresses and 24 dolls and this is donation acknowledgement #3 which I am making an exception (again acknowledging early) because I just have the right location for these dresses with dolls to go to. My doctor cousin who goes to hinterlands or remote locations  in CDO Philippines (and where only doctors dare to go) to treat small kids and I want her to give each kid that she and her group treats with a dress and a doll inside the pocket. I know the number is limited but it sure would make 24 little girls happy. And am sending the parcels to her (in addition to other dresses) at the end of March (so that means I have to pack them).
Here are the 32 dresses and 24 dolls that Suzanne sent me this time -

and here is a close-up picture of a doll that goes inside the pocket of each dress -

To Suzanne, thank you so much for your kindness and generosity and thank you as well to the mini dolls that came with the dresses. These items will definitely bring big smiles and wide eyes filled with excitement and surprise to the 24 lucky little girls who get to receive them. Thank you so much.

Dress Distribution #55 - Children of India c/o Mercy and Grace Charity Parcel 3A

This is an advance packing for another parcel to India c/o Mercy & Grace Charity and is Dress Distribution No 55. This parcel is sealed and will only leave my humble abode when am financially ready. That is what is keeping me busy at nights these days. Packing parcels and putting them on standby until I have raised the needed dollars to pay for postage. My budget this year is divided between sending dresses and my wish to have a well built in Uganda. Unfortunately I dont have that many markets this year as this is my travel year and the dates are in conflict with my travel dates so I hope I get to sell more items from my shop. Will see how it goes. When the going gets tough (including unwanted negative feedback)...I guess the tough gets going.

Anyway, this parcel has 85 dresses inside but the picture/album only shows 84. I seem to be missing one picture. I decided not to open the plastic bags anymore since my left arm started to become sore again. I think it is from the pressure of making sure I fit 6 plastic bags inside the box and since Saturday I have packed about 5 parcels. 
So here is the parcel that is on standy until am ready to send -

here is the count of the contents of the parcel (to show there were 85 inside and am sure my math was correct  - I always do this count in every parcel -

here are the contents of the parcel -

made possible by the following donors -
1) Sandra Turnbull
2) Pam of Threading My Way
3) Ladies of Kapunda Sewing Group with a few sponsored by Elaine McGlashan, Chelsea & Chloe, Kerry
4) Frances Cornish
5) Linda Smyth
6) Sarah Tanmahapran
7) Monika Osvald
8) Cassie Ashley
9) Nicole Devet
10) Katherine Nott
11) Betty Barrett

No undies on this parcel and except for the missing picture, all donors of dresses have been identified.

To see larger images of the contents of this parcel, please click here. For more details on this distribution (and also at a later stage when feedback is received) please click here or click on the special 'Dress Distribution' tab which you can find at the top of this page.

Thank you so much to all the donors who made this parcel possible. Thank you for the materials, time, money and effort you all spent in making these dresses being given to the less fortunate children of India . Your kindness and generosity is very much appreciated. Thank you.

If you feel the need to enquire about this distribution, please feel free to send an email to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. Thank you.

Contact Details

When sending dresses to donate to this campaign, can you please make sure you include a note with your contact details inside the parcel so i can easily contact anyone if i have questions on your parcel. Or you can fill up the dress submission form which you can find in the left navigation pane of my blog. An email address is good enough. This way it will make it easier for me to decide what to do with dresses that need repairs (i.e. Too thin and requires lining) or used dresses. I do not have time to make repairs and actually i do not know how to repair a dress but to show my appreciation and respect to anyone who contributes i want to be able to contact anyone if i think there is a minor problem. Thank you.

Big sizes ...where are they going

I have a collection of donated dresses (about 20) which I think will fit teenagers – ages between 16 to 18 or maybe 20. They were labelled as size 12 or 14 but I think these are too big for 12 or 14 kids. So I asked a few contacts from different locations/countries  if they can find me teenagers who they think would love to own these dresses and one  responded that there are a lot of teenagers who would be happy to receive these dresses. These teenagers do not go to school because of poverty. Some of them are still in the elementary grades and takes them longer to finish school because their parents cannot afford to pay for their tuition fees. They sometimes go to school and  drop out in the middle of the year because there is no money anymore to pay for the fees and not knowing when they are able to go back. So I have decided to pack up these dresses to send to the Philippines (again since it is nearer and they deserve it too... and can save me a lot on postage - stuff is a bit heavy due to size :-)) and give to these teenagers to wear. To let them know that even if they cannot go back to school yet,  someone is thinking about them and thinks they still deserve to  own a nice dress.  For them  they can only dream of a better life while some of us are already living it .

Another Friendly Reminder on Used Clothing

Not sure why I need to do this but just want to remind everyone again that I do NOT accept used clothing. Any used clothing received will not be included in any distribution so please do not send any at all. Used clothing attracts high customs duties in some locations as they think it is going to be sold and not given to the children and I have no allocation for customs duties. So if you want to help, help up to the point where the parcels are delivered to the recipients without any hassle at all. Thank you.

Dress Distribution #54 - Children of Malabon Manila (c-o Norie Bordador) Parcel 1a

I must have labelled the plastic bags with wrong months as I noticed while sorting that I have dresses received in the earlier months of the year 2013 and no longer have those received between May to August. Tsk...tsk..

Anyway, this is Parcel #1 of 3 for the Children of Malabon, Manila again c-o Norie Bordador. It is a parcel of 49 dresses, 18 sets of t-shirts and pairs of shorts, 22 headscarves and other hair accessories and 50 mini bags. The distribution which has been organized by Norie and with the help of other group of volunteers and with the assistance of Sr Ma Rosalina Luzon, the MCJ Coordinator will be made at Sto Nino Chapel and Mission Center in Malabon City. I think the two parcels that left over the weekend for Navotas will also be coordinated by Sr Ma Rosalina Luzon. I am just very lucky that I can find volunteers who can do distributions on my behalf and can really see that the dresses end up with the children in need. Makes my work very worthwhile although not easy as other people would think. 
Here is the parcel -

and here are the contents of the parcel -

made possible by the following donors -
1) Ladies of Kapunda Sewing Group with some of the dresses sponsored by Joyce Uray, Sheryl Shanahan, Alecia, Gemma & Lilly, June Branford, Barbara White, Gwenda, Heather, Bev Wenice, Paisley Parish
2) Gaylene Herrmann
3) Prudence Mann
4) Lesleigh Mitcham
5) Sarah Tanmahapran
6) Sue-Ellen Cox
7) Wendy Yates
8) Canungra Circle of Friends
9) Maureen O'Brien (Pairs of shorts)
10) Nicole Devet (Pairs of shorts)
11) Monika Osvald
12) Katherine Nott
13) Linda Smyth
14) Sharyn Paull
15) Betty Barrett for the mini bags

No undies were included in this parcel, all dress donors identified but donors of 12 pairs of shorts cannot be identified. If these pairs happen to be yours , let me know.

To see larger images of the contents of this parcel, please click here. For more details on this distribution (and also at a later stage when feedback is received) please click here or click on the special 'Dress Distribution' tab which you can find at the top of this page.

Thank you so much to all the donors who made this parcel possible. Thank you for the materials, time, money and effort you all spent in making these dresses being given to the less fortunate children in Bulacan . Your kindness and generosity is very much appreciated. Thank you.

I also would like to extend my heartfelt thank you to Norie Bordador for organizing and coordinating all these distributions, making sure that they get to the children in need. Thank you Norie. Your efforts are very much appreciated.

If you feel the need to enquire about this distribution, please feel free to send an email to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. Thank you.

My Winter Appeal sets

Last Saturday morning from the postoffice I decided to go to K-mart and check out prices for the winter appeal program. The items that I bought were still a bit pricey because I think it is still a bit early to be buying these type of clothing especially when it is still about 34 degrees outside in some locations.

Anyway, I bought myself 2 sets for the winter appeal program. One for a boy and one for a girl both size 6. I  found a ready-made set more expensive so decided to go for a mix and match.

Just to give everyone an idea as to how much it probably will cost you to buy a set here is what I spent. Other shops maybe  cheaper so I would suggest shopping around before buying anything if you are intending to donate.
           For the girl size 6 I paid $5.00 for the close neck shirt and $6.00 for the leggings.
           For the boy size 6 I paid $5.00 for the close neck shirt and $8.00 for the pants
I think i can find the pants cheaper in other shops but it was good quality and did not really want to drive to another mall to save a dollar because then my petrol would be more expensive. :-) And because I only needed one singlet and one pair of socks each and looking at prices buying a pack of 3 was cheaper than buying just one piece, I bought a pack of 3 for the socks and the singlet at $5.00 each. So now I have an extra pair of socks and singlet which I can allocate to other contributions requiring a sock or a singlet. I did not have to buy a beanie. I got the allocation from the beanies Gaylene Herrmann sent to me last week. 

All in all I spent $14.30 for the girl winter set and $16.30 for the boy winter set. For some of you who wants to help in the winter appeal, if you shop around I think you will be able to get it at a cheaper price. Maybe next week it will be a dollar or 2 cheaper. It is just me who does not want to do it. I will just skip my dessert a day next week to make up for it or buy sushi rolls instead of a lasagne for lunch. LOL!

So now I have the following available for allocation to other sets -
1 singlet
1 pair of socks
5 beanies 
I have not look at the submissions yet but whoever needs any of the above, please let me know.

Habit Factor Challenge Update

This is for a friend of mine who is watching me doing this challenge. After 3 weeks, this is where I stand and a week more (ends on the 2nd of February) to submit my data to check my progress and see if I win a prize in the competition. 

Trying to develop a habit of saving a gold coin a day I now have $42.00 in my moneybox after 21 days. Dont look that much but I counted it last night and it does equal 21 days@2.00 a day. Sometimes I do not have a gold coin so I dropped 2 dollar coins. Will be a big help this weekend when I send a parcel. :-)

I have learned 20 Japanese verbs in the last 21 days although they are a bit confusing and I really have to use or more of "hear it often" so I can remember them. I listen to the verbs when am on the train on my way to work and really helps. The nice thing about the Japanese language is you use the same verb regardless of whether you are referring to yourself (I) or another person (He or She) or a group(them) unlike Spanish where you use different pronouns otherwise they will not understand what you are saying.

Been 100% on the above habits but not on the third habit of walking 10,000 steps a day. Am not using the weather as an excuse (although I probably am crazy if I start walking at 30 degrees, dont think am that desperate) but due to work sometimes I feel lazy to go out at lunchtime. I think I missed 6 out of 21 but I already lost a kilo. Am not like other people where after a couple of days exercise, their weight immediately drops. But this is what I need to prepare myself for my Lima trip. :-)

Since I have been doing this for 3 weeks now, my day does not seem to be complete if I cannot accomplish at least 2 of them. The challenge is ending on Monday and not really sure what my chances are of winning although I would love to win. But win or lose, as far as developing habits to reach my goals I think I already won. Winning a prize is just a bonus (and would help my postage fund of course. LOL!)