From the frontline Caitlin Rogers

From the frontline

Caitlin Rogers

Program coordinator | homeless hub Loddon Recipient of the 2021 Barb Devcic Award for outstanding customer service.

how did you come to work at hhS?

I worked in a variety of community services areas previously, Out of Home Care, disability and complex mental health, so have always worked on the outskirts of ‘homelessness’. Many of the clients I supported would come in and out of experiencing homelessness and I continued to see how important it was for stable housing and compassionate care around achieving this. The position was advertised right when I had just made the move to Bendigo and I thought it would be a fantastic opportunity to finally step into the housing and homeless sector further. I was so excited to be able to work at the heart of this challenging circumstance for people and to be able to support a team of staff who are making big changes in people’s lives.

What has stayed with you this year?

How resilient people are, both staff and clients. It continues to amaze me how everyone has continued to keep moving forward (even when it seems like an impossible battle!). For anyone who has to reach out for assistance by HHS, they are already experiencing an extremely difficult period in their life, to have that topped off by a pandemic and unbelievable change over the last 18 months – they are still able to look to the future. The same goes for all staff at HHS!

The organisation has continued to move forward through a pandemic, massive organisational change, and is still eager to improve and transform into a better business. What does 'showing up’ mean for you?

Showing up means always being there for the people in my life, whether personally or professionally! Being there for the people in your life, even when it feels hard. Knowing that my fantastic team has support from me, on the good days and hard days. They do this themselves by giving 110% to everyone who reaches out for assistance. They make sure that we provide a safe and welcoming space for anyone who is experiencing a challenge and they work creatively to find a solution to every problem. They are some of the best and most amazing people I have ever worked with and they deserve to have me show up every day to help in whatever capacity they need.

how does hhS show up?

The pandemic has been such a challenging experience for every HHS staff member. There is no one in the organisation that hasn’t experienced some extremely difficult times over the last 18 months, however we are still here. We are still working and ensuring that everyone who presents to HHS gets assisted and supported promptly, and with compassion. This goes for everyone though, not just our front line staff. HHS is as big as it is because there are thousands of tasks and functions that need to be completed to keep the doors open and supporting our clients. The business hasn’t stopped since this all began and beyond that, we’re still future focused. We are constantly trying to adapt because if the organisation falls behind, the clients and workers fall behind. After the year that we’ve had - even when it's hard, the tone at HHS is uplifting and future focused.