Local People

EMILY BRIFFA

Interview: Stephanie Williams

Hamlet Cafe has been part of the Hobart hospo landscape since February 2016 and delivers targeted training and work readiness skills in order to tackle the barriers which prevent disadvantaged Tasmanians from participating in work and community life. Since then, founder Emily Briffa has helped to provide over 22,000 hours of work experience to over 260 Tasmanians.

Where in Hobart do you live? West Hobart.

What’s the best thing about Hobart? Being so close to nature.

And the worst? The lack of public transport.

Tell us a little about your work? Hamlet is a registered charity with a mission to empower people to live meaningful lives in their community. We operate a social enterprise, Hamlet Cafe, where we deliver on the job work experience and training opportunities to people facing barriers to employment.

I’m inspired by... All of our participants. I think admitting you need help can be really difficult so I am always inspired when I see them walk through the doors each day.

How did you respond to the Covid-19 pandemic at Hamlet

and how are things going now? We put our work experience program on hold. As we are working with vulnerable community members our top priority is always their safety so we paused the program in the cafe and started delivering some of our training online. We were operating as a takeaway only venue and we also started our Hamlet at Home ‘take ’n bake’ dinners, which were really successful thanks to our amazing customers. Things are starting to return to a sense of normal for us which is really nice, our participants have slowly started coming back into the cafe for training, albeit with reduced numbers. Our catering arm still hasn’t quite picked up again and I think we have a way to go here but we are all just really happy to still be able to open the doors each day and do what we love.

How important are businesses like yours to Hobart? I think businesses like Hamlet are incredibly important to Hobart. Prior to COVID, Hobart had been identified as a youth unemployment hotspot with rates as high as 16.9% - these figures are set to soar due to COVID. I think Hamlet provides essential support and training to young people who are struggling to get their foot in the door. Hamlet also creates a real sense of community for our participants and our customers. I think that’s really important for people, especially in the world we are living in now.

Are there any covid things that have become part of Hamlet

that you’ll keep beyond the immediate pandemic? We received funding from the State Government to start preparing meals for Hobart City Mission’s food relief program and I would really like to see this continue in the future, especially when things like job keeper and job seeker payments start to drop off at the end of September.

Where’s your favourite Hobart eatery? Hamlet obviously, but when I’m not here you can usually find me at Tom McHugos. They have an excellent wine list which changes pretty regularly.

Guilty pleasure? I’ve been known to watch some pretty bad television!

Favourite team? Richmond Tigers.

I’d like to travel to… Everywhere and anywhere but until that’s allowed again there’s still a lot of Tassie I am yet to explore.

If I didn’t live in Hobart I’d live… Possibly Melbourne. My whole family is there and I miss being close to them. Not sure I could do big city life again though.

Where to next? A lot is happening at Hamlet at the moment and I am really excited to see what the future has in store for us.

Quote to live by? “The effect you have on others is the most valuable currency there is.”

BOXER LUKE JACKSON

Interview: Stephanie Williams

After turning to boxing at 18 to escape a tough childhood, Luke Jackson has become one of Australia’s best boxers. He recently completed the 5-5-75 running challenge, raising funds for LIVIN, a charity that aims to break the stigma of mental health.

What’s the best thing for you about Hobart? The people, my family and my close friends. I’ve had a lot of support from Hobart people in my boxing career. They always come out and support me in my fights. I’m in Sydney at the minute and I walk down the road and I always say hello to everyone. Everyone. I think that’s probably a Tassie thing. They look at me like, “Who the f--k is this guy?” And I’m just like, “I’m just saying hello, mate. Relax.”

And the worst part about Hobart? The weather. It’s way too cold.

Tell us a little bit about your work. I’m a professional boxer. I went to the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, World Championships. So I’m a boxer by trade, if that’s what you’d like to call it. I’m also a personal trainer. I had a gym in Tasmania called Action Fitness Centre. A lot of people used to train there, especially a lot of women. There’s nothing wrong with cardio boxing but I teach real boxing. I love all exercise. If someone is moving, I’m happy, but I specialise in technical boxing. If you’re going to get in a fight, you have to know what you’re doing. And in Sydney, there is a big market. I’m training so many different people from the kid, to the bikies, to women, to businesspeople.

What’s your dream job...or fight? I think I’m living my dream job. I’m very lucky that I get paid really good money to do something that I love. But my dream fight, a fight that I’d like now, probably against Gervonta Davis. You’d get paid a lot of money for that one! Let’s make it happen.

I’m inspired by... That’s a big one, isn’t it? I used to be inspired by Kostya Tszyu. I’m just inspired to try and be a better person every day. I’ve had a few ups and downs in my life, as has everyone. And I’m just inspired to try and be better and keep moving forward. I’m a very positive person, even when things aren’t going well. I just try and be better every day.

I’ve read about your battle with depression in the past. And you’ve talked about having a tough childhood and youth. When did boxing come into the picture? And how did that

come about? I had my first fight when I was 18. I trained for

“Preparing for my homecoming fight (2015), my first fight as a professional in Hobart. We sold out the Hobart City Hall and won by KO and it’s an altitude mask, not for COVID!”

about six months. I always wanted to do something. When I was a kid, I had no attention, I had no structure, there was nothing there. I lived by myself from the age of 12 in my dad’s house. He was living with his new wife at the time, in another house. I grew up by myself, so I just always watched movies, like Bruce Lee, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jackie Chan and Steven Seagal. I thought it was pretty cool and used to pretend, as a kid, to fight everyone. So I thought it might get attention off people. Never did I think that it would take me to where it has.

You recently participated in the 5-5-75 Run recently, raising money and awareness for LIVIN. You ran a challenging

5 miles (8kms), every five hours for 75 hours. We raised $15,000. The reason I chose LIVIN is because it’s close to home. It started because of Dwayne Lally - he’s a boxer and he took his own life. He was a good friend of mine. Billy Ward was a young guy I went to Olympics with. I was his captain, and he took his own life too. I got the call as team captain and then had to bloody ring all the boys that day and tell them. It was f--king horrendous. And then, my other mate, Dan, he’s a boxer, went to the Commonwealth Games with me, he took his own life. A lot of my mates have, it’s heartbreaking.

Do you think that that’s something connected to boxing? Of course. There’s a lot of head knocks, you know? It’s not healthy for you. And then, a lot of them get involved in drugs and alcohol and all that afterwards. So yeah, it’s siit. But, how LIVIN help is they go out into schools and local areas and rural areas and share information about suicide prevention and what they can do to help. The run was my way of just trying to do something for them but, at the same time, do something for

myself. I put myself in a bubble and felt good. That’s when I’m at my best - I put myself in a bubble and I don’t worry about anything.

What advice do you have for people in the thick of going through a rough

time, right now? Just keep going, man. Keep going, get through the day. If you can’t get through the day, get through the hour. Before you know it it’s the next day, and then, just keep going. Just hold on because better days are coming for all of us. It’s a tough time with everything that’s going on, especially now with COVID. So many people are losing hope. My advice is just to keep going, hold on tight and talk to someone you can trust. And if you can’t trust, just trust yourself, back yourself. Life’s an amazing thing.

You were diagnosed with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). How does your diagnosis figure in your life now?

Oh, just as bad as always. I mean, sometimes I don’t help myself with choices I make in my life, but I always land on my feet and keep going. I’m a very positive person, even when things are going to s--t. I always try and just remind myself, “Things are good. Everything’s good. Everything’s great.” And if I keep saying it to myself, I start to believe it. Life is very hard, but life’s hard for everyone. It’s not just me. Everyone’s going through the same stuff in some way, everyone’s dealing with their own head noise. And you’ve just got to be strong and try and get through it. Like I said, if I can’t win the day, win the hour. And then, just keep winning the hour until you get through it. You must surround yourself with good people, exercise every day, drink plenty of water, stay off the drugs, stay off the alcohol. And just stay positive, man, because you have to. Because you only get one chance to live.

What’s your number one training tip?

It’s bloody show up. Show up every day, even if there’s a day I don’t feel like training, but feelings don’t matter. Just get to the gym and do something, just sweat. If you have a bit of a sweat, you’ll feel better. Trust me.

“I’d just defended my WBO Oriental title at Hobart City Hall (2017) against a tough Mexican opponent. Pictured here with my Nan and Father, Tony.”

When is your next big fight? Is there

anything on the cards? I was supposed to fight in April, but with everything going on, that got cancelled. So hopefully, September, if not, hopefully October or November. I’d love to come back to Tassie next year and run our big show there again. And do it one more time before I do hang them up and say thank you to the people again, for helping me out to get to where I am today.

What do you love doing outside work?

I love hanging out with my dogs, I’ve got two little dogs - a Jack Russell and a Miniature Pinscher. I love them so much. One’s 10 and one’s 11, so I’ve had them since they were babies. I hang out with some of my mates. I just like eating good food and I love training. I’m a pretty simple person, nothing too much! I like the summer, I like the beach and just relaxing.

Where’s your favorite place to eat out in

Hobart? I love Solo Pasta. And I’m upset Simon’s no longer there. I have something on the menu called Il Pugile, it’s the dish that I made up. It means ‘boxing’ in Italian. I told Simon I wanted it and it was that popular he put it on the menu!

Drink of choice and where do you head

for it? I love a lager. Back home, I go down to Salamanca somewhere, like The Den. It’s good in the summer, such a nice place to have a drink. I’d like to travel to... I’ve travelled to over 80 countries, all around the world. I’d love to see more of South America. I’d love to visit Brazil, Columbia, Peru and Argentina. And your guilty pleasure? I love sticky date pudding and ice-cream. I could eat that all day!

And favourite team? My favourite team? Team Jackson, all day.

What do you never leave home

without? My phone. I was going to say my brain, but sometimes I leave that at home, don’t I?

Quote to live by? “Tough times don’t last, tough people do.” And, “Find a

If you or anyone you know needs help call Lifeline on 13 11 14.

way.” I’ve got that tattooed on me.

“I’m 18 months old in this pic. Ready to box!”