Small donation, big impact

Did you know that $20 can provide pillows and blankets for a woman or child facing homelessness due to domestic violence?

Just $50 funds essential groceries for an affected woman and her children.

These figures are hugely important for community-funded charities such as The Haven – Nepean Women’s Shelter, which provided emergency accommodation and case work support for 22 local women and 28 children last year. The shelter relies on support from everyday people to ensure the organisation can keep its doors open and continue to assist residents.

Penrith’s Mayoral Charity Ball is being held next month to raise money for The Haven. It is an opportunity for the community to get together for a night of exciting entertainment, touching true stories, and celebration for the life-changing work of this charity.

The event will be hosted by Australian entertainer David Campbell OAM and each ticket purchase includes a $50 donation to The Haven.

With the donations from every four tickets sold, The Haven can provide another woman and her children two nights of safe accommodation and case work support.

For $700, a family can be nurtured and supported at the shelter for an entire week.

Penrith Mayor Tricia Hitchen is encouraging residents, businesses and community groups to attend the event and help support The Haven, as “a little help can go a long way”.

“We are moving into the cooler months of the year and while most of us have a warm bed to sleep in at night, sadly many women and children will be left homeless in a desperate attempt to escape domestic and family violence,” she said.

“If we all pitch in, we can help change this devastating reality by making sure that no woman or child is turned away from such a critical support service when they need help the most.”

To find out more about the Mayoral Charity Ball, visit penrith.city/ events. Tickets can be purchased on the Eventbrite page via the QR code in the advertisement below. Ticket sales close soon, on Wednesday, April 19.

A GalaBid page is now live at galabid.com/penrithcharityball for monetary donations and where guests can bid on various items.

Check out this amazing photograph of members of the Kingswood Tennis Club, enjoying a picnic in around 1910. Certainly very different outfits that we’d wear out on a picnic today.

While not everyone in the picture is known, definitely featured in the photograph are Dick Paskin (no hat), Arthur Tolhurst, Clarrie Boots, Col Craig and Stu Craig.