3 minute read
Everybody is welcome
CatholicCare is partnering with other community organisations, including Mission Australia, to provide much-needed services and support to the Hamilton South community.
In Mathew 25:35 Jesus says: “I was a stranger and you welcomed me”. At CatholicCare we believe the onus is on us to ensure that where we see a need we do something about it. This is the ethos that we worked from recently when we made the decision to sign a five-year lease on the Hamilton South Community Hall where we will increase our grassroots, volunteer-led services for people in their local community. In today’s society where many people struggle with loneliness, social isolation, poor mental health and a range of hardships it is imperative that we as an agency of the Catholic church in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle welcome everyone regardless of age, religion, gender, sexual orientation or political view.
The Hamilton South Community Hall has been part of the local community for 40 years and is a place of welcome for local residents from the high-density housing estate that surrounds the hall. On any given day you can see residents working in the community garden adjacent to the hall as they offer friendship and support to each other while they tend to their garden. There have been a range of excellent social services agencies over the years that facilitated programs out of the community hall. It is our intention to partner with those agencies, and importantly with nearby residents, as we co-design new programs that will be provided to the local community.
The co-design process involves working with the already established Hamilton South Community Solutions Working Group which includes staff from Mission Australia, the Samaritans, NSW Police, Gospel Church and the Hamilton South Baptist church as well as local residents. The intention is to help create interventions, services and programs that will work in the context of clients’ lives and reflect community values and goals.
The success of the co-design process lies in the ability of staff from each agency letting go of their professional assumptions and actively listening and learning from what the people living in the community say and do. Each agency’s expertise, professional knowledge and research can then be considered in relation to group input, to add colour to the possibilities of approaching social issues with specific groups. CatholicCare’s food program will be serving hot, nutritious meals from the hall on a weekly basis and the Samaritans’ food pantry will provide groceries at a reduced rate.
As a new service provider joining this community, we recognise that we are, in fact, coming to their table and not the other way around. We are conscious that it takes time for people to engage, build trust and develop meaningful relationships with our team.
As with our community kitchens, it is our hope that the Hamilton South Community Hall will be a soft entry point for vulnerable people needing to access services that will support them in line with our vision for inclusive, just, and strong communities where all people feel safe, validated, and are able to have their voice heard.
Our first event at the community hall, hosted by the Hamilton South Community Solutions Working Group, will be held on Wednesday 9 December 2020 at 12 noon.
This will include a free barbecue lunch and pet vaccination clinic for Hamilton South residents. Reading activities will also be held on the grass outside the hall for children under five years and their families and carers. We are excited to extend our support to the Hamilton South community.
Whether we are delivering food services to those experiencing homelessness, working with women and children who are fleeing domestic and family violence, supporting refugees and asylum seekers, providing counselling and support to those struggling with mental health issues, working with children and families in care or those at risk of entering care, supporting people with disabilities or walking alongside people who are recovering from addiction, our message at CatholicCare is clear … everybody is welcome.
Gary Christensen is Director of CatholicCare Social Services Hunter- Manning.
