First gifts placed under Kmart Wishing Tree as appeal launched
- deansimpson7
- 4 hours ago
- 2 min read
BY LAUREN MARTIN
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has launched the 2025 Kmart Wishing Tree Appeal, supporting The Salvation Army’s ministry to Australians in need at Christmas time.
“The Kmart Wishing Tree Appeal reflects the best of the Australian spirit – generosity, compassion and community,” Mr Albanese said.
“With the support of Kmart and The Salvation Army, it’s always special to see Australians coming together to make Christmas a little brighter for families doing it tough.”
It is the 38th year of the Kmart Wishing Tree, a nationwide campaign in which Australians are invited to purchase and donate gifts in-store, which are then donated to Salvation Army centres to distribute to families who are struggling to make ends meet at Christmas.
The Salvation Army’s Colonel Rodney Walters and Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley placed the first gifts under the Wishing Tree to kick off the appeal, which runs from now until Christmas Eve.
Rodney, Secretary for Communications, later posted on his social media, “So many gifts and so much collaboration in bringing gifts with big smiles! Thanking God for opportunities to support those who need it most!”
Earlier in the day, Rodney had attended the annual Parliamentary Prayer Breakfast, which drew more than 500 people, one of the largest recorded attendances in recent years.
The theme was ‘Rejoicing in Hope’, with Dr John Dickson as the keynote speaker, who spoke on Romans 12:11-18 and issued a powerful challenge on ‘conflict versus compassion’.
“Leaders of the respective political parties shared in the importance of prayer in the everyday aspects of their lives,” Rodney said. “It was a wonderful opportunity to unite in prayer.”
