The Benalla Homelessness Response Group’s Welcome Kitchen has marked 12 months of operation.
The Benalla Homelessness Response Group recently celebrated the first anniversary of its Welcome Kitchen project.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
With its Welcome Place night shelters now closed until next winter, it also held an information evening at Benalla Library on Tuesday, September 16, to keep the community informed of its plans, and its successes so far.
Prior to that, on September 7, a number of guests braved the rain and cold for the group’s first community meal this spring.
“The Welcome Kitchen is going well with the food relief and community meal program operating each Sunday,” BHRG president Kate Holmes said.
“Our partner organisations, Benalla Lions Club and Benalla Rotary, are back on board, supporting us with the food van.
“Guests and volunteers enjoyed hot soup and a delicious meal prepared by our community supporters.”
The information evening included volunteers and special guests sharing personal stories of their experiences in the shelter, and what it meant to them.
“The information night was attended by around 20 people including volunteers, representatives of partner organisations and guests from the Welcome Place Winter Shelter,” Ms Holmes said.
“Several guests chose to attend the evening, and their stories really touched our hearts and brought home the importance of the program.
“The guests spoke of the importance of the connections they had made through the shelter, how their lives had been significantly changed by their contact with our volunteers and a renewed sense of community.
Benalla Homelessness Response Group’s Welcome Kitchen celebrated its first birthday on September 7.
“This type of event provides an important glimpse at the workings of a winter night shelter for members of the public and provides an opportunity for people who are not involved in the shelter to understand how necessary the program is, and to feel inspired by the stories they hear.
“Stories shared by volunteers and guests highlight the deep humanity of this kind of project and demonstrate the change and transformation which can occur in people’s lives when they are offered such basic human needs of comfort, connection and community.”
It has been a busy few weeks for BHRG, which also facilitated training for its volunteers earlier in September.
“People were very happy to receive the training, as it has provided greater awareness on how to approach those difficult conversations and support people to get the help they need if they are thinking about suicide or going through a really difficult time,” Ms Holmes said.
Ms Holmes said in an ideal world, the night shelter would operate all year round.
“The night shelter is a huge undertaking, requiring 56 shifts to be filled every week on a seven-day schedule,” she said.
“It was a huge effort by everyone, and we are still in contact with our guests from the shelter — something which we regard as a success because it means they have integrated into the community and now have increasing avenues of support to get their lives headed in the direction they want to move.”
7°C