Update on Victorian Bushfire Funds

In 2009 the generous members of the Sydney Diocese donated $575,000 towards those affected by the devastating February 09 bushfires in Victoria.
The funds were allocated by the Diocese of Melbourne with most of the money being used to fund chaplains and community support workers to provide pastoral care to those people whose homes, communities and in some cases family, had been destroyed in the fire.

ACCESS ministries were one organisation that received our funds and they have reported back that their chaplains have been able to provide pastoral care to students, parents and staff of the school communities in the Kinglake and Whittlesea area. They attended and facilitated many memorial services as well as 12 month anniversaries. Chaplains have journeyed beside many families, school staff and students as they have grieved over the losses faced during this time, losses being that of friends, family members, property, pets, all their possessions, work, schools and the in pouring of goodwill from outsiders to these tightly woven communities which was sometimes confronting.

The process of grieving will take a long time, particularly when many families are still struggling to rebuild, many still living in caravans or with friends. It will take many, many years for some individuals to move to a place of ‘normality’. The work of the Chaplains will continue and will be required for some time yet.

Glebe Assistance and Partnership Program

Glebe Assistance and Partnership Program is based on a partnership model. This means that we aim to empower our clients to make choices that allow them to move beyond their crisis.

Mary (not her real name) first came into our centre feeling as if she had nowhere else to turn. She was very embarrassed about having to seek financial assistance and felt that she had little “dignity left”. Mary had a large electricity bill that she was seeking assistance with, however, at our first meeting Mary expressed that her financial difficulties was only one the many things ‘on her mind’. She said that over the past year she had become increasingly depressed and was feeling “hopeless”, she was finding it difficult to manage financially on her Centrelink payments and was drinking alcohol “more and more to cope”.

In her first appointment it was explained to Mary how GAPP works. The partnership aspect was also explained and she said that she really wanted to find a job and work in a partnership with us to help achieve this. Mary was given assistance with her electricity bill and after a discussion about her living arrangements; we filled out an application form for the Department of Housing, and proceeded to write a budget together. Mary agreed not to drink until she came back for her appointment the following week.

During her second appointment Mary said that she was not confident about “how to get a part-time job”. We talked about the type of work she would like to do and wrote a Resume for her to forward to a number of prospective businesses in the industry of her interest.

At our third and final appointment, Mary had a job interview for two days later. Mary had also received confirmation that she was on the Department of Housing’s waiting list for priority housing. Mary also said that she had only “had two glasses of wine” on Friday night and felt “totally in control of her drinking”. She said that she no longer felt depressed; however, she was very nervous about her interview as she felt that she did not “interview well”. We practiced some interview skills together and she left feeling very excited.

The next week Mary dropped by the centre to say that she had a part time job and was totally “on-top of my finances”. She said that she felt the best she had in ages and felt ‘capable’ for the first time in years.