A callout to Kiama community for fabric to support a decade-long cause helping breast cancer patients

The Kiama community is being urged to donate their preloved cotton sheets and doona covers to be transformed by local volunteers into simple and practical gifts for breast cancer survivors who have undergone surgery.

The Simple Gift of a Bag started a decade ago by Sandra Williams and her daughter Lauri after they experienced firsthand the impact this item could make for patients recovering from breast cancer surgery who were trying to move around and complete daily tasks with a drainage bag.

“My daughter had a left mastectomy 10 years ago when she was 34 and she got given a bag by a friend,” Sandra said.

The handmade fabric bag wasn’t high-tech or complicated, but it made Lauri’s recovery more comfortable by eliminating the stress of trying to transport the drain around during a difficult time.

But despite still being in the midst of her own battle, Lauri had the big picture in mind, and asked her mother if they could make more bags.

“I said, ‘Of course I can. What colour do you want? And she said, ‘No, can we make them and send them all over Australia?’ and so we are,” Sandra said.

The plan was originally to make 500 bags for Wollongong Hospital to say thank you, but once they hit that milestone they didn’t slow down, with Sandra and her team of volunteers now having made more than 30,000 bags that have gone to 88 hospitals across the country.

“The first couple of years were really tough and it cost us a fortune to keep it going but we didn’t stop,” Sandra said.

“At first it was just me and three friends but now we’ve got about 48 people all over Australia.

“I generally collect the fabric, cut it out into the shape that we need and then pack it together if the people are interstate and can’t source fabric and send it off to them and they make the bags and send it back to me washed and cleaned.

“I’ve got an ironing crew now which I didn’t have before, so we have three ladies that iron them and then we pack them and send them off.”

As demand continues to grow, Sandra is determined to continue to deliver.

“A friend of mine asked me the other day, ‘Are you still doing that?’ But when do you stop?” she said.

“When there’s a cure and then I can retire.”

While Sandra and her team work tirelessly, sourcing enough suitable materials is an ongoing challenge, and despite receiving donations, utilising op shops and fundraising to purchase fabrics, they always need more.

“The demand is never going to stop so we need heaps,” she said. “They just keep coming; there’s no end.”

Kiama business the Linen House hopes to make donating a bit easier by acting as a collection point for materials that can be repurposed into bags.

“We’ve seen things that Sandra has done and we’ve got linen here and I thought we have people coming in to buy linen as well and if they have any that they want to donate we can pass it onto Sandra and also save it from going to landfill,” Linen House manager Renae Chapman said. “And then we’re donating some fabric from our warehouse as well.”

The shop on Terralong Street is collecting donations until 14 December to see if the improved accessibility and drive will lead to more support from the community, while also relieving Sandra of having to travel to collect from individuals.

“It’s just that we’re all there for each other and seeing it’s a wonderful cause and all volunteers getting together and making the bags, we want to be there to support whatever we can do and if that’s getting community dropping off fabric or us giving donations, we’re here to help,” Renae said.

The donated material must be washed and a breathable cotton or blend, not flannelette or shiny materials.

Doona covers or sheets are often ideal, with large pieces greater than a metre needed to ensure that they can be repurposed.

“We don’t do patchwork, for the simple reason that the breast care nurses I have spoken to have said less seams, less germs,” Sandra said. “So the more seams you have the more germs can attach to the fabric and then of course you have something running into your body and it can be a problem.”

But if you don’t have material on hand, there are other ways to get involved, with the organisation always in search of more volunteers, and even holding a workshop day next year for all to be involved, regardless of their sewing skill level.

“There will be people sewing, packing, ironing, cutting, having cups of tea and doing whatever and everyone is welcome to drop in,” Sandra said.

To find out more or to volunteer contact Sandra Williams by email at [email protected] or visit their Facebook page.

The Linen House Kiama is located at 2/134 Terralong Street and will be collecting fabric donations until 14 December.