Close Menu
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Local History
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
  • Read Our Newspapers Online
    • Read the Latest Western Port News
    • Read the Latest Mornington News
    • Read the Latest Southern Peninsula News
    • Read the Latest Frankston Times
    • Read the Latest Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News
  • Competition
  • Home New
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Wednesday, July 2
Breaking News
  • E-bike rider charged following fatal collision in Hastings
Facebook X (Twitter)
MPNEWSMPNEWS
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Local History
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
  • Home New
Breaking News
MPNEWSMPNEWS
Home»News»Swags bring security and health
News

Swags bring security and health

By Stephen TaylorDecember 11, 2017Updated:December 18, 2017No Comments3 Mins Read
Bed for the night: Carol O’Brien exceeded her own target by raising enough money to buy 12 backpack swags for those living rough on the southern peninsula. Picture: Yanni
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email
Bed for the night: Carol O’Brien exceeded her own target by raising enough money to buy 12 backpack swags for those living rough on the southern peninsula. Picture: Yanni

CAROL O’Brien has raised enough money to buy 12 swags for those “sleeping rough” on the southern peninsula.

The swags sell for about $100 each and make sleeping safer and more comfortable.

Ms O’Brien belongs to the Wednesday Night Rosebud Community Group that meets at the New Peninsula Baptist Church. There, low income people with life struggles can come for a meal, learn how to support one another and make a difference within their community.

Rosebud Community Group team leader Mark Matthews said Ms O’Brien has “not had the easiest of journeys with housing over the past 10 years and has experienced homelessness herself”.

She has lived in rooming houses, which have proven to be unsafe, particularly for women. She now lives in a small caravan in a Rosebud caravan park.

She can’t afford to pay market rates for private rental and so obtaining a higher standard of housing is not an easy option. She is on the waiting list for public housing.

But her own plight has not stopped Ms O’Brien from being a strong advocate for those experiencing homelessness in the Rosebud Community Group, and the wider Rosebud community. Mr Matthews said her struggles with housing had motivated a “deep empathy” for those who are sleeping rough.

“She is an amazing example of how anyone with a vision and passion for social justice can impact those less fortunate than themselves,” he said.

“She demonstrates that you don’t need to have wealth to make a powerful and positive difference in your local community.”

Ms O’Brien started raising money three months ago by selling cards at Wednesday Night Community Group meetings where part of the proceeds going charity and “tin rattling”.

“Homeless people lose their dignity because they usually wear the same clothes and rarely have use of a shower and laundry which also identifies them as homeless,” Ms O’Brien said.

“They carry their belongings in a trolley or bag and blanket. They cannot hide the fact that they are homeless. They suffer from chest infections, hypothermia, frost bite, trench foot, skin infections and mental health issues, which affects homeless people even more so because of their living rough.

“Society discriminates, shuns and can also physically and verbally abuse them.  They lose trust in people which encourages more isolation impacting upon their mental health.”

Mr Matthew’s said Ms O’Brien’s goal had been to raise enough money to buy two swags by the end of this year. “Through her dedication and persistence she has raised enough to buy 12 swags,” he said.

“For a homeless person, receiving a backpack swag will provide a sense of dignity, self-esteem, renewed hope and, hopefully, the understanding that someone cares about them.

“The backpack also provides security for better sleeping and it can improve a person’s health by providing protection from the elements.”

Australian Bureau of Statistics show that, on any given night, more than 100,000 people sleep rough or in inadequate housing. Rosebud is not quarantined from this struggle.

First published in the Southern Peninsula News – 12 December 2017

Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email

Related Posts

Railway station scam

July 1, 2025

Flinders result unaffected by poll blunder – AEC

July 1, 2025

Grand Hotel’s tower revamp signals new chapter for icon

June 26, 2025

McCrae telco tower refused over visual impact

June 26, 2025
Add A Comment

Comments are closed.

Peninsula Essence Magazine – Click to Read
Peninsula Kids Magazine – Click to Read
Letters to the Editor
Property of the Week

14 Bass Street, McCrae

June 3, 2025
Council Watch

Shire secures $3.9m to tackle road safety

June 16, 2025

Kinder flyer flag snub prompts councillors to take over

June 10, 2025
100 Years Ago This Week

Baxter – On The ‘Wallaby’ with a walking group

July 1, 2025
Interview

Firefighter shows skills from sea to snow

February 5, 2024
Menu
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Local History
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
  • Home New
About

Established in 2006, Mornington Peninsula News Group (MPNG) is a locally owned and operated, independent media company.

MPNG publishes five weekly community newspapers: the Western Port News, Mornington News, Southern Peninsula News, Frankston Times and Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News.

MPNG also publishes two glossy magazines: Peninsula Essence and Peninsula Kids.

Facebook X (Twitter)
© 2025 Mornington Peninsula News Group.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.