HFH Australia’s Gala Dinner Raises A$131,000

Money Raised For Thousand Homes For Hope Campaign To Help Families In Australia And Asia-Pacific Region

Prominent Australian volunteers swapped hard hats and work boots for cocktail dresses..

SYDNEY, 18 July 2012: A gala dinner attended by 220 guests raised A131,000 (US135,000) in support of Habitat for Humanity Australia’s Thousand Homes for Hope Appeal.

The money raised was twice as much as the amount garnered at the inaugural dinner last year.

Through the campaign, HFH Australia aims to transform the lives of 1,000 families in Australia and the Asia-Pacific region through safe, decent and affordable housing.

The evening’s program was peppered with classical music, magic, comedy and lots of good-natured encouragement during a live and silent auction.

Bid items included a Global Village experience for two which went for A14,000 and a trip to New York that raised A6,000.

During the evening, the new ambassador for the volunteer group Habitat Women was announced. She is Helen Conway, Director of Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace, an Australian government agency. She and other Habitat volunteers have come together with the goal of giving women outside the country a “hand up” out of poverty.

The dinner in Sydney was hosted by broadcast journalist and HFH Australia ambassador Angela Catterns. She talked about her meaningful experience building homes in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, where she learnt more about how Habitat builds communities through holistic programs.