Here at Bonnie’s, I’m the person who approves brokerage requests from my colleagues for the families they are working with. This means my team of workers will pop by, or write to me requesting anything their family needs. The requests range from social connections, removalist, medical needs and day to day expenses. 

However, the request for school supplies, especially school shoes, is the most common and heartbreaking request. These requests are usually just a few lines long. For instance, like this one:

“This family has moved 3 times in the last 3 months because the perpetrator has found out where they live. That means change of schools, and new uniforms. I’m requesting money for the purchase of x 4 uniforms for all kids.” 

When reading this, I think of our clients’ struggles when they have disclosed their hardship to their workers. 

I know how hard it is hard to ask for support and even harder to ask for it a second time. 

Seeing the many requests that land on my desk daily, I try to form a connection between the form and the stories behind the struggles and the women needing the support. We try our best to support but in any service there are also guidelines and limits that we must consider. 

So I am writing this like a letter to my team, for all the “No’s” that I had to say. 

The “No’s” are never easy, and the decisions are always fraught. 

However, we are fortunate to have great partnerships with other local agencies who can say “yes” when I say “no.” 

With Bonnie’s friends’ ongoing support, the “No’s” are not that often at all.

Blog by An