Vinnies Thrift Shop Strives to Save Underprivileged School Children

Since its opening on 24 February 2014, Vinnies Thrift Shop in Kenmore, has been raising funds to assist disadvantaged members of the community.

Vinnies Kenmore sells pre-loved, donated goods including men’s, women’s and children’s clothing, accessories, bric-a-brac, furniture, books, and lots more, all at affordable prices.

The shop also accepts good quality items such as books, clothes, furniture and bric-a-brac that other people can still use. Donated items are either given to people in need or sold at the shop. By donating to Vinnies, not only are people helping others, but they are also reducing the amount of items thrown to the landfills.

Proceeds from Vinnies sales help finance various programs of St. Vincent de Paul Society in support of underprivileged Australians.

Vinnies Thrift Shop
Photo credit: Vinnies QLD / Facebook

Fighting Social Injustice

St. Vincent de Paul Society is a lay Catholic organisation whose members believe in putting their faith into action by assisting people in need and fighting social injustice across Australia. They feed, clothe, house, and assist fellow Australians who are forced onto the margins of society.

With the increasing number of children living below the poverty line in Australia today, one of Vinnies’ programs seeks to support underprivileged children and their education.

According to the Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS), one in six children are living in poverty. In 2018, it was found that approximately 739,000 children are living in homes where the income is below the poverty line.

Children living below the poverty line face challenges every single day. Their parents struggle with stretching the daily budget which is why these children can’t afford school items, clothes, bags or even packed lunches. This is unacceptable in a country like Australia.

Used crayons & pencils
Credit: Image by _Alicja_ from Pixabay

Support for Disadvantaged Australians

Vinnies recognises the importance of education in breaking the cycle of poverty. As part of its program, Vinnies’ network of members work individually with underprivileged families to make sure that children have the resources they need to get the most out of their education.

Assistance may come in the form of home visits, homework clubs, kids’ camps, mentoring programs, school supplies, food, clothing, household items or medicine.

Vinnies also holds parent education and training programs to teach mums and dads the kind of support they need to give their children’s education besides showing them how to manage their budgets.

Boy walking to school
Credit: Image by ambermb from Pixabay

Located at 8 Brookfield Road, Vinnies Thrift Shop is open from 9:00am- 5:00pm on Mondays to Fridays, from 9:00am – 3:00pm on Saturdays, and 10:00am – 3:00pm on Sundays.

Drop by and shop or donate an item to Vinnies and help support an underprivileged child’s education.

For contact details, click here.

A Reason to Thrive For The Thrift & Thrive Shop in Kenmore

With its array of donated items like clothes, books and bric-a-brac, newly opened The Thrift & Thrive Shop on Kingussie Street in Kenmore may look like just another secondhand store, but it stands for a unique and noble purpose.

Officially opened on Friday, 1st March 2019, the new thrift shop aims to serve the community by raising money for Reason to Thrive’s equine-assisted learning programs.

Official opening of Thrift & Thrive
Official Opening of The Thrift & Thrive Shop
Photo credit: Reason to Thrive video/Facebook

Reason to Thrive is a registered charitable institution. The organisation promotes the wellbeing of disabled and at-risk children or adults experiencing distress and/or mental health problems. It does this through equine-assisted learning (EAL) and therapy.


Read also: Kenmore: One Of The Generous Suburbs in Brisbane


What is Equine-Assisted Learning?

EAL is an innovative form of experiential learning that encourages disadvantaged or disengaged individuals to gain emotional control. Also, the equine-human interaction helps develop effective communication and body language skills.

This type of therapy is suitable for all ages and no horse knowledge or experience is necessary.

Equine-human interaction
Photo credit: Alexas_Fotos/Pixabay

Horses are in tune with human behaviour. They often act as a mirror of people’s internal landscape, so constant interaction with these creatures helps an individual acquire heightened self-awareness.

Interactions with equines also provide opportunities to teach critical life skills such as trust, respect, compassion, honesty, humility, and communication.


Read also: Recent Hendra Scare in Brookfield Fuels Cry To Have All Horses Vaccinated Against The Virus


Overall, participants gain self-esteem, self-confidence and all critical elements supporting self-growth from relational experiences with horses.

Reason to Thrive develops programs for:

  • Disengaged youth
  • Special needs kids
  • Veterans and their families
  • Women’s Empowerment
  • Survivors of domestic violence
  • People facing mental health challenges
Horses in tune with human behavior
Photo credit: rihaij/Pixabay

If you can’t make a donation, you are welcome to visit The Thrift & Thrive Shop and snap up a bargain. It is a fantastic opportunity for a small charity.

For details, click here.


Read also: Kenmore Village Encourages Everyone To Be Extra Kind on Strive To Be Kind Day