Manawatū charity donates more than 12,000 items of sports gear.
Replay charity helpers, from left: Paige Stephenson, 11, Millie McLean, 11, Lucy McLean, 14, Maddie Stephenson, 13, and Indie Stephenson, 7.
Manawatu Charity donated more than 12,000 items of sports gear - Stuff
A Manawatū charity has donated 12,000 items of sports gear to more than 3000 children who can’t afford their own.
Denise McLean started Replay after cleaning out her garage in 2017, sparking a discussion with family about what they should do with the old sports equipment.
Their Palmerston North garage was overflowing with everything from rugby balls to hockey sticks, so McLean enlisted the help of several schools and sporting organisations.
The charity operates in Feilding, Whanganui, Rangitīkei and Taranaki to reach children who don't have access to things like rugby boots, hockey sticks and cricket bats.
The charity operates in Whanganui, Rangitīkei and Taranaki to reach children who don't have access to things like rugby boots, hockey sticks and cricket bats.
It has over 20 collection bins, and works with principals and school sport co-ordinators to identify the children who would benefit most.
Its goal was to make sure children kept playing sport, despite the mounting costs of fees and gear.
About 30 per cent of the donated equipment was balls, 30 per cent was shoes and clothes and the rest was equipment.
She said people were continuously asking for balls and bats because they were easy to play with, and boots because they were expensive and children grew out of them fast.
McLean said she liked to keep it low-key because there was a stigma around taking second-hand gear.
“We are in a position with kids who are growing up and have gear in good condition.”
Before beginning Replay, she donated the equipment to charities, but decided she would be more efficient getting the gear to children directly.
“And it reduced the load on the environment and on the tip.”
She had seen demand go up after Covid-19, but donations hadn’t increased.
McLean said despite this, people had been better at dropping equipment off faster and more frequently.
She enlisted the help of local teenagers who needed to complete community service work for school, and they helped to clean shoes, pump up balls and count the collections.
There are bins at the Hokowhitu Four Square in Palmerston North, at Pita Pits across the region and at Massey University in Palmerston North. In Feilding there are bins at Feilding Library and TRC Toyota.