Community
4 October, 2024
Cans, Bottles make big difference
CAMPERDOWN’S Uniting Church has been collecting bottles and cans as part of an innovative approach to making a difference to those less fortunate.
The church has made use of the 10-cent refund collected on eligible cans and bottles recycled through the Container Deposit Scheme (CDS), which has been going towards the church’s Ministry Benevolent Fund, with over $1700 raised through the scheme.
Reverend Suzie Castle said the fund usually is collected through people dropping loose change into a plate at the door of the church.
“Last year, at the end of the year, I hadn’t spent any of it and there was $200 in the fund,” she said.
“Colin (Hayman) said, “let’s use the money”, so I rang up the primary school and asked if they had any families that were in need over Christmas, and they had three.
“I gave the $200, plus I put in $100 of my own money, so they all got $100 for each family to get through Christmas.”
Rev Castle said, in previous congregations, the fund has been used for a variety of reasons, including providing accommodation to women fleeing domestic violence as well as providing food for people who are strapped for cash.
“It’s good to have access to money to stop me dipping into my funds and running out of money – it helps me, but it also helps local people because it’s anonymous,” she said.
“Nobody knows who I help – it’s a discretionary fund where I can just say I need money and keep people’s names out of our treasurer’s accounts and out of our councils.
“It’s about upholding the dignity of those people.
“Most people need a little bit of help now and again from somewhere, and we use our Benevolent Fund to get across social issues that are going on for people.”
Rev Castle said the idea for using the CDS for fundraising came from a member of the church last year.
“Mr Hayman had this brainwave of turning the bottle collection into raising funds for the Ministry Benevolent Fund, because there had been times like this year where I’ve put a homeless man up in a hotel for two nights, and I’ve paid for that,” she said.
Rev Castle said the three people who collect the bottles and cans for the fund collect them from the Lakes and Craters Holiday Park.
“There’s two people, in particular, who don’t want their names mentioned, who have been incredible,” she said.
“I cannot tell you how hard they work – they’d be driving their car down a country road, and they’d stop and clean up the side of the road and pick up all of the cans and bottles.
“They go to extraordinary lengths to achieve this – if I give somebody $100 for a night’s accommodation, that’s 1000 bottles someone has put through the machine.
“I think the impact of that is huge.
“There’s two environments that it impacts – one is the external environment, and one is our internal environment, and how that makes us feel and how it makes us do our ministry.”
Rev Castle extended her gratitude to the three people who collected the bottles and cans, saying they have made a “massive difference”.
“Sometimes every day on a walk, or every week they go and clear up the caravan park bins and put all those bottles through,” she said.
“It is quite phenomenal that people are so dedicated to do this because they know their money lands where it’s meant to land.
“It’s made a massive difference because it’s given us our freedom – there’s a freedom in not being restrained by monetary restraints to help other people.
“Last year, I was restricted in what I could give because it’s Christmas time, and I can’t go asking people to give more money to things when they’re strapped for cash.
“To be able to say we can help more families, that’s just so liberating.”
Rev Castle said she was amazed at the difference made in 12 months through the collection of bottles and cans.
“Congregations aren’t huge anymore, and any money that as been given out in the past all comes from people in the pews,” she said.
“If I’m helping a homeless person out with $200 of accommodation, that’s come from people in the pews.
“As congregations get older, that’s coming out of pensions and they can barely afford to do that - they do it out of the generosity of their own faithful hearts.
“It removes the burden on the people in the pews, of which there are few, to be able to still do the work of the church, of what we’re called to do.
“We are called to get out in the world and to feed the hungry, help the homeless, and take care of the sick, and it allows for that in a bigger way than it did last year.”
TOMRA Cleanaway general manager Tony Catania said TOMRA was “delighted” with the response to the CDS scheme across Corangamite Shire, with around three million containers processed and close to $300,000 returning to communities within the shire.
“We feel extremely privileged to be supporting these fantastic not-for-profit charity and social enterprise groups to raise often much-needed funds to help finance some of their goal and objectives,” he said.
“We’re delighted, in Camperdown, to be working with the likes of the Camperdown Uniting Church, Camperdown Little Athletics Club, and the Camperdown Theatre Company – all of whom are utilizing our automated, conveniently located reverse vending machine in Manifold Street in Camperdown.
“We’d love to encourage other community groups and sporting clubs to use that facility, given its location and given its accessibility.
“We’re hoping more and more of the residents and community groups can benefit from that machine in terms of being able to get their 10 cents for every container or establishing themselves as a donation partner as part of the scheme.”
Residents using the machine can receive a voucher to redeem at Camperdown Woolworths, receive their refund electronically via the CDS West Zone app, or donate to listed groups such as the Camperdown Uniting Church.