Sarah De Jong among Tasmania’s 2025 Australian of the Year nominees

Sarah De Jong
My original idea was simply to make 1000 pocket hearts as gestures of kindness that had no purpose and really just increased the amount of kindness in the world. Working in non-profits I was working with people who were in some pretty tough situations and I just felt like kindness was very important and it was just an idea to contribute and my intention was to make 1000 hearts and move on . my life. That’s it. This was the extent of my goal at that time. I did that and sent them out into the world and the response was just phenomenal.

Joe Spargo
So what kept you going once you reached 1000? Have you thought about stopping?

Sarah De Jong
Yes, I did it. I mean the plan was to stop and I thought about it a lot because until this year I was always doing my real work as I would call it along with 1000 hearts and for the last few years, up until January of this year, I was a director at the Cancer Council of Tasmania and it was a big role and I was really juggling 1000 hearts and often wondering, you know, can I continue this realistically because it’s been so busy and now it’s a global community and it’s just amazing. So what keeps me going and this was really the defining moment last year where I had to think about what do I do? Would I give up 1000 hearts to pursue my career at a non-profit or, you know, would I give up that career and go after 1000 hearts, which was obviously a much riskier choice? But what kept me going was that this is what I created, and I created it from something very personal that I really believe in, and I put my heart and soul into it, and it all came down to, What I will regret more is you. know? Which one will I regret more? And I just thought that if I give up 1000 hearts, I’ll never know where it might go, and I just thought I’d regret it, you know, not knowing how far it might go, because I just I think kindness is important and we all have a responsibility to increase kindness in our world and that has become my mission.

Joe Spargo
This is a great little heart if you haven’t seen one before that fits in the palm of your hand or you can put it in your pocket and just play with it or use it for a little comfort. They are very, very easy to hide. How important is every heart to you, Sarah? Have you outsourced the work, are you using machines, or are you still doing everything manually?

Sarah De Jong
Great question. Look, I mean, hearts are actually a symbol of kindness and compassion, and it’s a really beautiful, tangible symbol, so it’s something that people can hold on to when they’re stressed or experiencing separation anxiety, well. , you know, when they’re separated from their loved one and all that. I outsourced it in the sense that 1000 Hearts is a global community of people who create hearts for kindness. The idea is that the people who make these hearts within the 1000 Hearts community give them away for free, and that’s the whole idea: it’s a gesture of kindness that comes from the heart. In this sense, I mean that there are people making hearts all over the world that I don’t even know about. I know about a lot of them, but, you know, my website is open for people to take it and interpret it and use it as a symbol if it means something to them. As for the hearts that I make, give away, and sell through my online store that supports the project, I do everything by hand. The only machine I have is a hydraulic press that I use to cut out the hearts, because if I cut them all out by hand, I’d be crippled by now and wouldn’t be able to sew at all. But all the sewing is done by hand, all the work is done by hand, and that’s actually a very important part to me because that’s where you put your love and good intentions into your heart. It is the symbolism that you have created, even if it is imperfect, even if it is a little shaky and tricky, it is this symbol of kindness and caring that matters.

Joe Spargo
And they really mean so much. I remember going through my late mother’s clothes and finding some of your hearts that she had had since I think we first spoke in 2016. So, what you do is truly special and congratulations on your nomination for Australian of the Year. . Thanks for talking to us.

Sarah De Jong
Thanks Joe.

Joe Spargo
This is Sarah De Jong. She is the founder of 1000 Hearts, those tiny felt hearts you may have seen that you can put in your pocket or hold for a little comfort.