Abbotsleigh College, Wahroonga

Abbotsleigh Z Club
Chartered: 2005

Sponsored by the Zonta Club of Hornsby Ku-ring-gai

Located: Abbotsleigh School for Girls is in the northern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales

Our goal is to raise awareness of world issues for ourselves and the school community. As we learn and educate ourselves and our peers about women’s circumstances in developing countries we become more aware of how fortunate we are and that not many women have the same opportunities as we do in our home country.We have supported these causes through awareness campaigns and fundraising:

Carrie’s Place – A women’s refuge in Maitland that shelters women and children who have been victims of domestic violence.

Room to Read – Aims to better the education of young women globally. This enables women around the world to reach their full potential and ultimately contribute to their local and broader communities.

Somaly Mam Foundation – A non-profit charity committed to ending modern day slavery and human sex trafficking in North America and around the world.

Hornsby Women’s Shelter – A refuge for women in Ku-ring-gai who have experienced domestic violence or homelessness.

Love 146 – An international human rights organization which strives to end the trafficking and exploitation of children, majority being young girls, through caring for survivors and implementing prevention strategies.

Whilst the primary aim of the Abbotsleigh Z Club is to raise awareness of the global status of women, we implement some simple fundraising strategies that enable us to support these causes. Last year we raised a large amount of money with a school wide BBQ fundraiser for women in the Ukraine. We have a Ukrainian music teacher at the school who was able to provide traditional music and another staff member was also involved in making and selling yellow and blue ribbons. We donated the money to Save the Childrenwho had a specific fund for Ukraine. This year we have held fundraisers at sporting and school events, and we sold lolly bags at the GLOW event. The funds will be donated to the Hornsby Kur-ing-gai women’s shelter with whom we communicate regularly. We also have a number of students participating in the City to Surf to raise money for the shelters. We aim to raise $800 for the Hornsby Shelter and Northern Beaches Shelter.

Our Z club leaders have been in contact with Hornsby High Z club and we are hoping to find a suitable time to meet and share ideas.