With news of domestic violence, unfortunately occurring in Sydney and beyond, three little Riverview locals have made it a point to make a stand, a marmalade stand, that is.
Homemade Marmalade
Mimi, 13, Michael, 11, and Matt, 9, will be selling homemade marmalade on the North Shore streets this weekend. They will donate most of the proceeds to the Delvena Women’s Shelter.
“It really breaks our hearts to see the situation that they’re going through day to day and how different their lives can be from ours and the life that we’ve been accustomed to,” the eldest Mimi expressed.
Victoria, their mother, said the exercise was an initiative to teach her children the value of money.
However, recent news of domestic violence in Sydney – in particular, the house fire that saw the death of three children in Lalor Park, which police are treating as a domestic-related multiple homicide – has inspired the young entrepreneurs to help DV victims.
Seville Oranges
The idea to craft and sell their product was plucked from their neighbour’s Seville orange tree. The fruit is much too bitter to eat on its own, but when life gives you sour oranges, you make marmalade.
“We’re using Seville oranges. You can’t eat them raw; you have to boil them into jam to consume them,” Matthew, the youngest, explained.
The family has made almost 80 jars of the spread in different sizes all sourced from homegrown Riverview plants, including lemons from a tree in their backyard to give the jam its thickness.
The Process
Creating the jam is no easy process. There’s much to do after collecting the oranges. ” We had to juice the oranges, then we had to shave the pectin off,” Michael recalled. We got all the pith inside a bag and all the juice inside a large pot, and we put the bag inside. Then we got all the joules from the bag and shaved it off and put it in the pot and then put it into jars.”
Women and Children First
In The Cove reached out to
Women and Children First , the organisation that runs the Delvena Women’s Shelter, which was thrilled to learn of the kids’ fundraising efforts.
“We were delighted to hear of this grassroots fundraising effort by young Mimi, Michael and Matt and think it’s such an awesome example of compassion in action,” Hannah Major, WACF Communications & Advocacy Officer said.
“We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to these inspiring siblings and urge locals to get down and buy some jam this weekend. The money will go towards providing nights of safety and shelter for women and children, as well as ongoing support and moments of joy, self-care, and connection.”
In the past year, Lane Cove was in the top four Lower North Shore suburbs with the highest recorded counts of domestic assault-related incidents, according to the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research report.
Unfortunately, domestic violence issues seem only to be increasing drastically. Last financial year WACF provided crucial services to 836 women, families, and young people – a nearly 60 per cent increase from FY2022.
It’s a grim statistic, but the juvenile jam makers haven’t lost sight of a better world and believe every little bit makes a difference.
“This is just a small way of helping them get by, maybe not for long, but just a little bit of money just to help them with food, or stuff like that. It’s just a small thing that we can do,” Mimi said.
The exercise has also given the kids a new arsenal of life skills that they say will help them with whatever life throws at them.
“My favourite part was designing the logo but I did really enjoy thinking about the prices and thinking about how we were going to sell it. I found that really interesting,” Mimi said.
“I think that this could really help us because you never know what’s gonna come next in your life… I think we like working together once we know the process because when you start you’re always a bit mixed up,” Matt added.
XL (over 500g): $15
L (approx 400g): $12
M (approx 350g):$10
S (200-300g): $8
There is a $3.00 delivery fee.
If you’d like to see the masters behind the marmalade in person before you make your purchase this is an option too.
The family will have a stand at York’s Corner on Tambourine Bay Rd this Saturday from 2 – 4 pm, cash payment only.
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