No doubt you all know by now of the horrific fires that have devastated parts of Victoria, Australia in the past week. It's a very sad situation and to date 181 people have lost their lives with many more still missing, huge amounts of wildlife have been wiped out and with a thousand homes burnt to the ground, there are many people who have been left homeless.
There are still 21 bushfire's currently burning across Victoria so the threat of more disaster is still there, particularly with more hot weather on the way next week. But the most sickening thing of all is the thought that some of the fires have been deliberately lit !! It's just unfathomable that someone could actually do that !!
My thoughts go out to those who have lost loved ones and their homes.
The great thing is Australians are amazing in times of need and even in these hard economic times, Australian businesses and individuals have so far managed to donate AUD $63 million dollars !! Help will be needed for quite some time so if you can spare some money, even a few dollars, please visit the
Red Cross website to donate.
The crafting community has also organised many great auctions, toy donations and fundraising to help out.
Handmade Help is a dedicated website you can visit to become involved - whether you're a crafter or want to help by making a purchase. There is also an
Etsy site called
Oz Bushfire Appeal where hundreds of items have been donated by Etsy sellers in Australia and Worldwide and proceeds will be going to the Red Cross. I donated two of my handmade cushions last night and I'm happy to say one has already sold.
Click here to see the listing for the second one.
UPDATE 16FEB: They have now raised over AUD $10,000 through the Oz Bushfire Appeal Etsy store!!
(click on photo to enlarge)
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