Melbourne’s First ‘Giving Machine’ Invites Hope this Christmas Season

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If you live in Melbourne, Australia—or are visiting Victoria’s capital city this Christmas season—you may want to go to Eastland Shopping Centre.

You will find there—across from the Santa Village—three shiny, red Giving Machines.

Different to other vending machines, #LightTheWorld Giving Machines offer the chance to give the gift of hope to an individual or a family by donating to a local charity. 100% of donations—which range from $10 to $200—go to one of six charities so they can continue their efforts to lift lives and strengthen communities.

Elder Peter F. Meurs, Pacific Area President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said at the ribbon-cutting ceremony on 27 November, “We’re grateful for our charity partners—we couldn’t do this without you.”

Saadgi Rajani, a Partnerships Manager at UNICEF Australia, said, “UNICEF is grateful for any contributions, great or small. We have a great and long-standing relationship with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as a charity partner, working with the Church in 11 different parts of the world. With the Melbourne contributions, we’ll be focusing in the Pacific—mainly Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, and Fiji.”

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Dr. Kylie Weston-Scheuber, Director of the Victorian Homeless Fund, said, “The tangible items really help increase the donations.”

Rajani and Weston-Scheuber joined with other charities’ representatives from Food Bank,

GIVIT, Backpacks for VIC Kids, and Blaze Aid—expressing appreciation for the opportunity to be involved in this 2023 “Light the World” initiative, which is sponsored by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Peta Kerwin, co-chair of this year’s event, said, “It fills my heart with joy to see people give. One of the donors said that it felt good to give back to a charity they had received help from in the past.”

Grant Logie, who welcomed guests, said, “Giving provides a better feeling than just getting something for yourself.”

Watch a video that shows what a Giving Machine looks like and does here.