Congratulations to our Member of the Month Verona School. The school works with 63 students all with different behavioural or mental health conditions. While educating their students the school takes holistic approach to try and give back to the students and families who are struggling. The school provides clothing, cleaning supplies and toys all accessed from Good360 to help the students in the classroom and reduce the burdens at home. Read their story of how they are serving their community with Good360’s support below.
When did you become a Good360 member?
We joined in 2019 but only started using the service in 2020
What programs do you use your Good360 donations for? Who does the program serve? How does it impact Australians in need?
Verona School uses the amazing donations for our students and school community.
Verona School has an enrolment of 63 students all with a diagnosed mental health, behaviour disorder or autism. Many students come from incredibly disadvantaged, low socio economic communities. The hygiene products are used in wellbeing programs and are provided to students to take home whenever they need, the cleaning products and appliances are distributed to our families in need.
LEGO sets are used for sensory play, rewards and gifts. BIG W donations are distributed amongst the community and play an integral part of our “Dress for Success” program teaching our students how to dress appropriately for different occasions and events e.g. an interview, a formal event, winter.
What is your favourite moment/interaction that you have had with a client when utilising the Good360 product?
Verona School had one family particularly badly affected by the floods earlier this year. The families house was damaged, and they were moved to hotel accommodation before new housing was sourced. Being able to present a single mum of five children, three with severe disabilities with a voucher to fill her new home with essentials from BIG W and seeing her emotional, heartfelt reaction really drove home that Verona is successful in holistically supporting our community.
It’s not just about curriculum.
How does being a member of Good360 help your mission?
At Verona School we aim to empower our community through education.
Being able to support our families by removing some of the barriers they might face in accessing education such as food, clothes, products means that they can come to school and concentrate on learning. We try really hard to teach our community that accepting help isn’t something to be ashamed of, it’s about supporting each other to achieve that common goal “Empowerment through Education”.
What would happen if Good360 wasn’t here to help?
Our school certainly wouldn’t be able to support our community in the range of ways we have been able to. Many of our families wouldn’t be celebrating Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, birthdays and Christmas without the gifts we have been able to provide through the amazing donations from Good360.
What is your favourite donation you have received from Good360? Why?
The BIG W clothes. We set up a ‘pop up free shop’ and the students got to shop for outfits. They loved choosing their own clothes and helping each other out. Our parents that visited for our community day were also able to ‘shop’ and were so grateful for the donations.
How many lives have you impacted through Good360’s donations?
Countless.
You can read some of Verona School’s Impact Stories on the Good360 Website.
