March Member of the Month – The Generous & The Grateful

Recently Good360 launched our Member of the Month program, this allowed us to celebrate and congratulate those members that go above and beyond. Our March Member of the Month was The Generous & The Grateful (GG)! GG makes futures brighter for survivors starting over, with great preloved or new furniture & whitegoods, turning empty rentals into lovely homes.

We interviewed The Generous & The Grateful Founder Carmen Platt asking her about some of her favourite moments and how Good360 supports GG’s work.

What programs do you use your Good360 donations for? Who does the program serve? How does it impact Australians in need?

We serve people at high risk of homelessness that don’t have the bulky big-ticket furniture and electrical items that every home needs. Our focus groups are survivors of domestic and family violence, refugees and youth at risk, as well as those moving on from homelessness.

What is your favourite moment/interaction that you have had with a client when utilising Good360 product?

A mum in Southern NSW who went into labour as the fires went through her area. The fires destroyed her home and then while staying with her parents had to evacuate again, after coming out of the hospital with a 5-day old. Since then she had been stayed motels and a caravan park before finally getting a house for her family. Her face when she saw how beautiful the bed frame, mattress, bedside tables and chest of drawers were as they came off the truck again and again was just priceless.

How does Good360 help your mission?

We know people have a better chance of recovering from trauma and tragedy from the safety and stability of their own home. With Good360’s help, we are able to provide brand new items like furniture, toys, mattresses, whitegoods and dining ware that are of beautiful quality. This gives a sense of dignity and boosts their self-belief. It tells our clients that they are worthy of lovely things, and are seen by those around them, they are not just an invisible statistic.

What would happen if Good360 wasn’t here to help?

We would help less people and the quality can sometimes wane. Sourcing preloved items from private individuals consumes a lot of our very limited resources and people don’t always understand or ascribe to our ‘better than nothing simply isn’t good enough’ thinking. By saving time spent processing all the offers of goods, controlling quality, and running around Sydney for smaller donations, we can instead deliver more packages to the people who need them.

What is your favourite donation you have received from Good360? Why?

Recently we received a couple of fridges and washing machines to take down to the bushfire zones. These are simultaneously our most needed, and hardest to get items! We see them like nuggets of gold when we are panning through all the donations we receive, and brand new – just WOW. Life will indeed be Good for the recipients of those thanks to LG, they will store food safely and eat together as a family, in clothes washed free of the ash they are often still haunted by daily.

How many lives have you impacted through Good360’s donations?

55-60 so far and counting!