What is Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre?
Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre is a 5 or 10 kilometre walk that will raise funds to support kids who are escaping domestic violence. Our long-time supporters at Westpac have partnered with us to organise and host the Walk, which will be followed by a celebration at their Kogarah Office. The Walk will be held at 9am on Thursday, 9th May, 2019, beginning and ending on Premier Street in Kogarah, NSW, right near Westpac’s Kogarah office.
Our goal is to raise $50,000, which will support The SEED Program at Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre (WAGEC). SEED addresses the Social, Emotional and Educational Developmental needs of our children and young people who have experienced domestic violence so that they can reach their full potential and walk away from violence for good. All donations of $2 or more will be tax deductible and you will receive a receipt after donating.
We would like to offer our sincere thanks to the team at Westpac for hosting this event and for all of their efforts and enthusiasm in planning and organising.
Why walk?
Domestic and family violence is the leading cause of homelessness among women and children in Australia.
At Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre (WAGEC), we create safe spaces, support and shelter so that women and their kids who are facing homelessness and violence have a place to go.
When we put a roof over our clients’ heads, this is only the start of their journey with us: violence takes a profound, long-term toll on children’s health and wellbeing, which means we need to do more for them after providing a safe space.
Sources: Australian Bureau of Statistics Personal Safety Survey (2017); Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2018), Guy et al. (2014); Jaffe, Wolfe, & Campbell (2012); Shin, Rogers, & Law (2015).
This is why we created SEED, a program to meet the Social, Emotional and Educational Developmental needs of children and young people who have experienced trauma or violence. SEED provides kids at Women's and Girls' Emergency Centre with enriching activities, including a school holiday program, tutoring and homework help, social support and other things that address the impact of adverse childhood experiences. By combatting the effects of trauma, we are helping kids reach their full potential and giving them the tools they need to walk away and leave violence behind them.
Last year, Women's and Girls' Emergency Centre supported 633 children and young people, but we were only able to deliver SEED activities to half of these children.
By Walking for Women's and Girls' Emergency Centre, you can change this.
Our goal is to raise $50,000 so that more kids can benefit from the SEED Program this year. Every $1,000 raised will sponsor a child to enrol in SEED activities, which will help him or her walk away from violence for good.
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About Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre
Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre (WAGEC) is a not-for-profit charity that has been supporting women and families in inner city Sydney and the inner west for over 40 years. We create safe spaces by providing support and shelter to women and their children when they need it most, in times of crisis and adversity. Women and families accessing our services have been impacted by the effects of homelessness, domestic violence and systemic disadvantage. Each night we are accommodating 200 women and children. WAGEC operates crisis refuges, medium-term supported housing, rapid response and outreach support for mums with kids as well as single women. We offer a specialist domestic violence support service after hours to provide intensive and targeted support when women and kids are leaving violent situations.
WAGEC also provides three tailored support programs, which help women through their personal journeys of recovery, encourage financial growth and independence through training and education opportunities and offer enriching activities to children and young people.
At WAGEC, we believe that violence against women and children is serious, prevalent and driven by gender inequality. We also believe that violence is preventable if we all work together and that everyone in our communities has an important role to play. You can be part of the solution and change a child’s life: Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre, so that kids and their mums can walk away from violence this Mother’s Day.
WAGEC is a registered charity with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status, which means you will receive a tax deductible receipt for any donation made that is $2 or more.
ABN: 92 622 90 342
Frequently asked questions
You can complete Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre by walking 5 or 10 kilometres on Thursday, 9th May, 2019.
The Walk will begin and end on Premier Street in Kogarah, NSW, right near Westpac’s Kogarah offices. Be sure to arrive no later than 9am to check-in for a 9.30am start.
Following the Walk, you are invited to a celebration held by our long-time supporters at Westpac at their Kogarah office. We’d like to offer our sincere thanks to the team at Westpac for hosting this event and for all of their efforts and enthusiasm in planning and organising.
Money you raise by Walking for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre will help kids walk away from violence.
All funds will go to Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre’s SEED Program, which supports the Social, Emotional and Educational Developmental needs of children and young people accessing our service. SEED gives kids the tools, skills and resources they need to reach their full potential and walk away from violence for good. For example:
$1,000 will sponsor one child to participate in SEED so that he or she is equipped with the Social, Emotional and Educational skills to walk away from violence for good.
$200 covers costs for one child or young person to participate in our school holiday program, which encourages kids to stay active during their holidays and provides them with opportunities to take day trips away from crisis accommodation.
$100 funds three tutoring sessions for one child so that he or she does not fall behind in school due to experiencing homelessness.
$50 will allow one child to participate in a therapeutic group that combats trauma and adverse childhood experiences.
$30 provides a Kids Essentials Pack so that children living in crisis accommodation have basic necessities like toiletries and back-to-school supplies.
Yes. Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre is a registered charity with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status, which means you will receive a tax deductible receipt for any donation of $2 or more.
Absolutely! If you are not based in or around Sydney and cannot come to Kogarah, we still encourage you to fundraise and complete a 5 or 10 kilometre walk on Thursday, 9th May, 2019. Every dollar raised will help us reach our $50,000 target whether you are walking in Kogarah or at another location that you suits your needs. You can share your participation with us by posting on social media and tagging us on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn.
To register for Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre, follow the link here to set up a fundraising page through Everydayhero.
- Personalise your page. Add a photo and tell people why you are raising funds for children who have experienced domestic violence.
- Aim high when setting your fundraising target - it actually encourages people to give more!
- Make sure the first donation is a good one. This will set the trend for your fundraising page. You might want to ask your most generous friends or family members to make the first donation - or make it yourself!
- Share with all your friends, family and colleagues. You’ll be surprised how many people want to support you.
- Remind your friends by email two or three times. With our busy lives, no one minds a couple friendly reminders!
- Keep people updated on your progress – people will be inspired to support you when they see how hard you are working!
- Thank everyone who has supported you. Let them know their donation has been noticed and appreciated. Thank them by email, social media or send them a thank you message through your fundraising page (see below).
- If you are close to reaching your fundraising target, increase it! If people think you are close to meeting your target, they may not donate as much
Both! While social media is great for sharing updates with your friends, research has shown that email is still more effective at generating donations.
Here are some suggestions for making your email asks effective:
- Make it personal. Tell people why you are raising funds for children who have experienced domestic violence.
- Always include a link to your online fundraising page in your emails.
You can also use social media to:
- reach out to your friends and family and ask them to make a donation.
- keep your friends up-to-date with your progress – including photos.
- share updates about Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre.
- thank your supporters by posting a message on their Facebook wall.
Follow the Everydayhero instructions here
Thanking your donors is one of the most important things you will do in your fundraising. Follow the Everydayhero instructions here to learn how to thank donors through your fundraising page.
We encourage you to complete Walk for Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre with a team which could include your work colleagues, friends or family members. Whether you complete the Walk individually or as part of a team, you can inspire members of your community to get involved in some friendly competition and see who can raise the most money to support kids escaping domestic violence.
You will have the option to create or join a team during registration or from your individual fundraising page after you’ve registered. You can find more information about teams here
Your fundraising page will be live until 31st July 2019 to give you plenty of time to reach out to your sponsors before and after the walk.
For more information on Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre, you can visit our website and follow us on social media:
Website: https://www.wagec.org.au/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WAGECREDFERN/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wagec.org.au/
LinkedIn: https://au.linkedin.com/company/women%27s-&-girls%27%E2%80%8B-emergency-centre
Alternatively, contact Chloe Sarapas, Women’s and Girls’ Emergency Centre Fundraising Coordinator on 0402 254 790 or chloe.sarapas@wagec.org.au