You could see and hear how much the Conjola residents appreciated the recent visit by Thread Together.
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Thread Together is an organisation that provides new clothes to people in crisis situations - like what local residents faced when the new year bushfire exploded into Conjola Park and Lake Conjola with a terribly destructive force.
Two Thread Together vans, full of brand new clothes, came to Conjola on Friday and Saturday and gave them away.
Their efforts were much appreciated - just ask the local man who was able to walk away with some much-needed work clothes or the woman who came back to the van to give a Thread Together staff member some seedlings as a way of saying thanks.
Conjola Recovery group committee members Peter and Lindy Dunn, along with Pam Date have been working with Thread Together.
The vans, because of COVID-19, could not come to Conjola until recently but Pam had been working with around 40 to 50 families on an online clothes delivery program, with Thread Together's support.
Peter said Thread Together's visit was about more than people just getting free new clothes.
"The really important thing is to lift people's morale as well as making sure they have got clothing," he said.
He said giving people access to new clothes lifts up with spirits.
"They say 'this [getting new clothes] is amazing and people care so much for us," Peter said.
Peter said the new clothes gave people a little ray of light they did not have before.
He added donations of second-hand clothing were also appreciated, met a need and was vital given many people fled the Conjola disaster with just the shirts on their backs.
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The recovery team member said the Conjola community had shown much grace when it came to accepting donations.
"So many people have said to us 'give it to someone else - I don't really need it'," Peter said.
Peter said Thread Together had become known in the community and encouraged people to accept the support.
Meanwhile, dignity is a word Thread Together's chief executive officer, Anthony Chesler, uses a lot to describe the visit to the Lake Conjola area.
Mr Chesler said the benefit of the mobile services is it gives people the chance to select, touch and look at the clothes they may want.
"We are just happy we can help people like Pam, Lindy and Peter from the Conjola Recovery group," Mr Chesler said.
"These vans are an asset to our organisation and the metro and regional communities they visit, enabling us to facilitate outfitting anyone in need, anywhere they reside.
"We are thrilled to have four new mobile vans to service the state of NSW and the communities heavily impacted by the events of this year."
Mr Chesler said the new clothes they give away would become landfill."
Second-hand clothing is good as well and it's great people are donating second-hand clothes," Mr Chesler added.
About Thread Together
Thread Together was founded in 2012 by Andie Halas, whose family owned the successful swimwear manufacturer, Seafolly.
Andie saw the potential for excess, new clothing to support people in need.
By collaborating with some of Australia's largest clothing suppliers and connecting social service agencies, Thread Together has been able to change the future of people in crisis, as well as the future lifecycle of clothing and accessories.
Through Thread Together, companies with too much can give to people that have too little.
