Backpacks 4 SA Kids INC.

Thank you BHP South Australia and Puddle Jumpers Incorporated for sharing nearly 100 doonas supporting our Home Starter packs and baby wipes for the backpacks program.

So many special little people are going to have big smiles as a result of this partnership 🧡

This is what community looks like 💛

Today the last of the BHP South Australia doonas made their way out the door and into the hands of another incredible organisation supporting children and families doing it tough. Alongside some nappy wipes, they were collected by our good friends at backpacks_4_sa_kids to help support their programs.

Sometimes people think charities should compete. We think differently.

Because when organisations work together, share resources, back each other and focus on the bigger picture… more children are supported, more families are cared for and more good reaches the community.

A van full of donations might not look like much to some people.

But to a child sleeping warm tonight, or a parent feeling a little less overwhelmed, it means everything.

This is what happens when community comes together.

FRIDAY FEEDBACK 💕

From a Foster Carer:

"I saw your website today, and the sentence that jumped up and smacked me in the face was, 'Imagine the stress and anxiety a child endures when they are removed from their homes, no belongings... no comforts...'

You see, I was one of those kids who had to leave home in an emergency in the middle of the night. I had my un**es and a T-shirt on. I won’t go into details about why all of this happened to me, but I can tell you I have never felt more alone, scared, vulnerable, and unloved than that exact moment, and it has haunted me my entire life since then.

This all happened before your backpacks existed, but I am a foster carer now, and I see the joy on the kids’ faces with their backpacks and their toys - how quickly they settle into their new homes with their own belongings - and I am so thankful for all that you do.

You are making a difference, and these backpacks are definitely a gift of love ❤"

💙 We love our volunteers and sometimes we capture a moment we just have to share 💙

What a week! Our community has once again been in incredible form. We’re talking thoughtful handmade gifts and essential items, generous financial donations and new collection points - all helping us bring comfort and care to vulnerable children and young people across SA. 💙

✨ Shout outs from this week ✨

• Another car load of donations from Elders Real Estate Victor Harbor - RLA 62833. Thanks to the generous locals.
• A cash donation from Val allowed us to purchase items from our Needs List and special comforts to help kids feel safe and settled at night.
• Thanks to the NC Equine Team & Parafield Gardens community for your ongoing contributions and support as a Collection/Drop Off point.
• Thank you Maddy for donating pyjamas so other kids can feel warm, cared for and worthy.
• Thanks Allan for answering the call for toothpaste and toothbrushes.
• Thank you Linda for some little packs of love for our kids to help them to remember, they are worth it.
• Huge thanks to K&B Mitre 10 Norwood & community for your continued generosity with another large collection of donations.
• Welcome aboard Glynde Mitre 10 as a new community collection drop off point. Thank you for your generous support.
• Welcome to the Office of Matthew Marozzi MP for becoming a local collection drop off point for the Norwood community.
• Rexel Electrical Supplies Windsor Gardens sent in a wonderful box of books, pyjamas, scrunchies and toys to bring smiles to many children’s faces. Thank you.
• Thank you Knit4charities SA for the beautiful quilts and blankets that will help keep our babies warm this winter.
• Thanks to Olivia Savvas MP & staff for your ongoing support as a drop off point, and thank you to the St Agnes community for your generous and thoughtful donations.
• Thanks to the staff at Bunzl for another fantastic load of donations.
• Thanks to Rexel Electrical Supplies Salisbury Plain for your continued support.
• Thank you Heather for the beautiful knitted dolls that will be treasured by the children who receive them.
• Thank you so much to Tiffany and the Yankalilla community for the very generous donation of hand knitted jumpers. They will certainly bring smiles to young faces.
• We thank LeeAnne and Ben from Shaw Thing Bookkeeping for their thoughtful donation of toiletries and underwear for our young people.
• Thank you Carol from Klemzig Community Club for your beautiful handmade items.
• Thank you to the Freemasons Enfield Lodge for their generous donation of $500 towards our Backpack Program.

To every individual, business, school, community group and volunteer who continues to stand beside us, we say a huge "thank you". Your kindness helps children facing crisis feel seen, supported and cared for during some of the hardest times in their lives. We truly couldn’t do this without you. 💙

✨Happy Moments✨

The Women Who Care ladies hit & Less Ingle Farm store this morning to spend the funds raised at the Ukelele concert.

Much to their surprise a Best & Less team member jumped in and helped them source all of the relevant stock they needed making the trip much easier for them all.

Whilst at the store the ladies met Senka who heard about what they were doing and reached into her bag adding to the funds and the impact these amazing women have made

Hugs and smiles all around♥️

Thankyou once again to Pitcher Partners for helping out in today’s Corporate Volunteer Session.

⏰ Last chance to make a difference (and maybe win big!)

Entries for the Double the Good competition close at 5:00pm (ACST) this Thursday, 28 May 2026 - there’s still time to get involved 💙

Imagine winning $50,000… and helping Backpacks 4 SA Kids receive a $20,000 donation to support children and young people doing it tough across South Australia.

Every entry that nominates us brings us one step closer to turning that $20,000 into essential items, comfort, and care for kids who need it most.

👉 Enter here: www.peoplefirstbank.com.au/doublethegood

Double the Good. Double the Impact.

When the lights go out, the world gets quiet.

But for some children, that’s when everything else gets louder.

The thoughts.
The uncertainty.
The fear of what tomorrow might bring.

For a child entering care or in crisis, night-time isn’t just bedtime, it can be the first moment they are truly on their own in a place that doesn’t feel familiar.

And in that moment, the smallest things begin to matter most.

🛁A warm bath after a long, overwhelming day.
⌚A simple routine that starts to feel normal again.
🥼Soft pyjamas that feel safe.
🔦A torch beside the bed so the dark doesn’t feel so big.
🧸Something small to hold when everything else feels unfamiliar.

These aren’t big things.

But to a child who doesn’t feel safe, they can be everything.

🧡They are the beginning of calm.
🧡The beginning of routine.
🧡The beginning of feeling a little less alone.

At Backpacks 4 SA Kids, this is what we try to create - comfort, safety for children when they need it most and the knowledge they are not alone.

This EOFY, we’re asking for your support so we can continue being ready for those moments.
Because children enter care and crisis situations every day.
And when they do, they deserve to be met with care, compassion, and something that helps them breathe a little easier that first night and all the nights that follow.

How can you help?
💙 Make a tax-deductible EOFY donation before June 30 here:
www.givenow.com.au/whenthelightsgoout

Or you can:
💙 Donate essential items for backpacks
💙 Or help by purchasing items that go directly into our packs

Your support helps turn an unfamiliar night into something a little softer.
Something a little safer.
Something that feels a little more like home.

Because our kids are worth it.