Hannah Farnhall has taken an innovative project to help the homeless from brainwave to the boundary line.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Damascus College student has founded Socks of the West, with the support of the Western Bulldogs, and for every pair of socks she sells, a pair will be donated to the homeless.
Hannah took part in the Western Bulldogs Leadership Project last year and, as part of the program, had to create a project to help society.
She was part of a group that chose to run a sock drive for the homeless, which ended up distributing 1500 pairs of socks.
“Homelessness is everywhere. It’s something we see. We know that we can’t get rid of homelessness completely, and we wanted to help so we chose socks because socks are the least donated item,” she said.
After the success of last year’s sock drive, and having enjoyed the six month project, Hannah elected to be involved in the first Western Bulldogs Social Enterprise Project this year, in which groups take on projects that make money in a socially responsible way.
“We decided to keep going and open up Socks of the West. What we doing is we are making socks and selling them and for every pair of socks we sell donate another pair to the homeless,” Hannah said.
Hannah and two other students have designed their own socks, which feature dots, waves and socks, which are being manufactured in Melbourne.
As part of the project the trio had to pitch their idea to the Western Bulldogs Administrative Board for approval to go ahead, and for financial sponsorship.
This week their Socks of the West website went live and they are waiting to hear if the AFL will give them the green light to promote the socks at Western Bulldogs AFL games.
“The website is where you will be able to buy socks and read more about what we are doing,” Hannah said.
“I really enjoy being a part of this new project, as I get to make a real impact, raise awareness of homelessness and I learn skills in how to be a leader. I also get to meet and interact with a wide range of people from around western Victoria, where I learn about them and the impact they are making in their communities.”