Good Night Sleep Appeal Reaches New Aim
New Aim has committed $40,000 in mattress donations to assist flood victims in the Lismore region.
New Aim has donated new mattresses from its Giselle Bedding brand to 200 households impacted by recent flooding in the Northern Rivers.
Lismore families will receive mattresses this Sunday, May 1 at Goonellabah Sports and Aquatic Centre (GSAC) between 9am and 12pm. The process will be managed by more than 30 volunteers, primarily from Lismore Floods Good Night Sleep Appeal - "just people helping other people".
In total, over the next two weekends, Lismore Floods Good Night Sleep Appeal will distribute more than 500 mattresses on behalf of New Aim, Koala, and GIVIT.
It started as an Instagram post during the February floods, with New Aim reaching out to an appeal from NeighbourGOODS calling for mattress donations. In April, Murwillumbah-based Shoobridge Transport picked up the Giselle Bedding mattresses from Melbourne.
From start to finish, the entire process has been managed by two teams of a few volunteers each from NeighbourGOODS and Lismore Floods Good Night Sleep Appeal.
NeighbourGOODS is focused on connecting flood victims in need with goods and storage facilities, while Lismore Floods Good Night Sleep Appeal began as a Go Fund Me campaign raising funds for families.
New Aim Chief Operating Officer, David Huang, said it was important to make a commitment of support at the right time to assist with recovery efforts.
"It has been heartbreaking to hear the stories about the extensive damage that this weather event has caused across NSW and Queensland from friends of the New Aim family, including our logistics and retail partners," said David Huang, Chief Operating Officer at New Aim.
"It was our aim to work directly with those capable of making a difference and make a commitment of support at the right time to assist with the recovery efforts."
New Aim was focused on finding outreach teams and community groups on the ground to identify exactly what was needed, without overwhelming charities and frontline services.
"Lismore Good Night Sleep Appeal has been on the ground since day one working tirelessly and helping people get back on their feet," said Huang. "While the hard work of restoring homes, businesses and the community will go on for years, we hope our Giselle Bedding mattresses can provide some comfort to these families and make a small difference in their lives."
Al Thursfield, a volunteer at Lismore Good Night Sleep Appeal, added that although the media spotlight on the area has faded, many residents face a long road to restoring their homes and lives.
"We might be back to life as normal, but so many people are still in the thick of the recovery," she said. "It was important for us to create a channel where people could easily help - we never could've imagined it would become such a huge operation."
In a show of support, from a single post on the Revive Lismore Facebook group, Lismore Good Night Sleep Appeal was able to allocate 100 mattresses in one day.
"But this means so much more than just a mattress for people in Lismore, it's an extension of the fact that communities and companies like New Aim and Koala genuinely care," Mr Thursfield said.
"It started with Lismore locals Daini Stephenson and Myles Doughman, boots on the ground, directing people out of their homes to the clear - when people asked what organisation we were from, we could and still can only say we're just people helping other people."
