Make an impact

An ACU Engagement update:

We’re excited to be working with Impact for Women on a range of projects that will assist in supporting women and children fleeing domestic violence. We'd love your help.

Dress a Doll

This year, a generous donation of 500 plush dolls was received to assist with the ‘Bags of Love’ Christmas campaign; however, the dolls need clothes. You can help by creating or donating an outfit for the dolls in various ways.

Donate: a store-bought or hand-made doll outfit. Please include your name and any other outfit details you would like included in your submission.

Join the competition: all entries must be hand-made (sewn, knitted, crocheted etc) not store-bought outfits. Accessories (shoes, jewellery etc) may be purchased items. You may also follow commercially available patterns in the creation of the outfits.

Outfits can be entered into one or all of the following three categories and you can enter a maximum of two entries per category:

• Wear a Touch of Red: Once a year, Impact invites all Australians to join their campaign and 'wear a touch of red' to promote the clear message that domestic and family violence, in any of its forms, is not okay. Entries in this category must incorporate red in the doll outfits, either through a completely red outfit or a ‘touch of red’ such as red accessories.
• Catwalk Fashion: Dress your doll in a fashionable outfit ready to walk the catwalk. She can be dressed in current fashion, your favourite fashions of the past, or your prediction of fashions for the future.
• Powerful Women: Dress your doll to represent a powerful woman, from a period in history (including present time). She may be an iconic politician, activist, athlete, or scientist. If she represents a specific person please include this detail in your submission form to ensure she is identified correctly.

All donations and competition entries must be received by 30 September. The winning entries will be announced on 14 October in Melbourne during the No Excuses! Choir charity event.

Further information, including dolls measurements, competition entry details and submissions can be found at the dress a doll for impact webpage.

Join the No Excuses! Choir

In 2015, Dr Kathleen McGuire from the Faculty of Education and Arts, together with music therapist from a women’s shelter Dr Christina Green, composed an inspirational work for women on the theme of family violence. Together they created ‘No Excuses!’, an original choral suite inspired by true stories from women survivors of family/domestic violence. The more recent public focus on issues of women’s safety will now see No Excuses! revived again to raise funds for Impact for Women.

Victorian women are invited to join our choir and perform in concert to raise funds for Impact for Women. Rehearsals have just started, but more women students, staff or  alumnae from ACU and the wider community are still sought after to join this all-abilities community choir and no auditions are required.

Find further information here and join via the No Excuses! event page at www.acu.edu.au/noexcuseschoir.

Mark these upcoming performance dates in your calendar:

• Melbourne campus Thursday 14 October 7 pm, Cathedral Hall (livestreamed)
• Ballarat campus Saturday 16 October 4 pm, Connors Hall

*To comply with COVID-19 safety protocols, the Melbourne event will be livestreamed and anyone from any campus is welcome to attend this virtual event. 

A kind donation to register is requested, with all funds going to Impact to support their ‘Bags of Love’ Christmas campaign. Tickets will be available from mid-September and further details will be provided.

Staff Volunteer Opportunities

Both of these events will require volunteers in a variety of roles. If you are interested in assisting with the dressing of the dolls and setting up the doll display at the No Excuses! concert, or are available to assist at the concerts behind the scenes, we would love to hear from you.

Community Engagement Time Release will apply in most cases.

For more information about any of the above please email acuengagement@acu.edu.au.