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Grant Stories

Support for young mums

Cara Inc

Teenage girls who are single, pregnant and living in care are unlikely participants in mainstream pre and post natal classes or other educational and support services offered in the community.

CARA In Safe Hands program provides support and care for these young women who are mums-to-be or young mums and who do not have extended family support or partners to help during their pregnancy or after the birth of their baby. Living in supported accommodation with a house parent, the young women learn about caring for their babies as well as receiving educational and life skills supports.

As the young women in the program have experienced family breakdown, In Safe Hands provides the young women with skills to be confident parents and to make positive choices about their future and the future of the babies.

Living and sharing experiences with other young women also reduces the social isolation of these young women and as well as the feeling of “being different” from their friends and peers.

 

Dining with Asylum Seekers in Brunswick

Broadmeadows Uniting Care

The “Share My Plate" recipe book is a project that has grown out of weekly Tuesday night dinners that are run out of the Asylum Seeker Welcome Centre in Brunswick for asylum seekers and people connected with the Centre.
"Share My Plate" is a compilation of recipes from around the world that have been prepared at the dinners and each dish tells a story about culture, family and place.

For many people arriving in a new country, food and cooking not only provides the opportunity to maintain connection with home and family and friends, it also provides opportunities for people to build an identity for themselves and connection with other members of their community.

Recipes for meals from the countries of the people who attend or volunteer at the Centre, and the stories surrounding the preparation and sharing of those meals, provides Melbournians with opportunities to connect with the cultures of MelbourneÙs newest residents, generating more opportunities for community connectedness.

 

Scholarships in Melbourne's Inner North

The John Cummins Memorial Fund was established to honour the memory and legacy of John Cummins who died in 2006. John was a social and political activist and throughout his life John was devoted to supporting young people, in particular those experiencing disadvantage. In 2008, the Fund established an annual scholarship program for secondary students enrolled in a government school and were experiencing financial hardship. Each year a number of scholarships are awarded to students from schools across Melbourne's northern suburbs, including Thornbury High School, Coburg Senior High School and Northland Secondary College. Scholarships of up to $1000 are awarded to students for items such the purchase of equipment, school books and school uniforms, Met cards and excursions.

As this feedback from the Principal of Northland Secondary College suggests, the scholarships enable real change for students: “Jake (not his real name) was going to pull out of school because his mother did not have the money to pay for equipment he needed to do the pre-apprenticeship program. He and his mother are so excited about the fact that he has received this scholarship and that there are no financial worries in terms of his education.”

 

Leadership training for young Burmese refugee women

International Women's Development Agency (IWDA)


IWDA works in the Asia-Pacific region in direct partnership with local organisations of women who live and work in the communities. For this project, IWDA supports local partner, the Karen Women's Organisation, to run the Karen Young Womens Leadership School . The school provides education opportunities to 22 refugee women a year from the Karen ethnic minority in Burma from the nine refugee camps along theThai/Burma border. 

Since 1988, close to a million Burmese have fled their country to neighbouring countries and border camps, where they live in extreme poverty and oppression with no understanding or protection of their rights.

The Karen Young Women's Leadership School is creating opportunities for women to improve their lives and communities.  Over 13 month's residential education, students gain skills in leadership, advocacy and community development, leading to positions in community governance and human rights.

65 young women have graduated from the School since its inception seven years ago. They have taken up leadership positions in Karen refugee camps, Karen Women's Organisation, and are raising awareness of the plight of the Karen internationally.

For further information about IWDA and its work www.iwda.org.au

“It’s more than just the footy for the Stars”

Oxfam Australia and Fitzroy Stars Football Club

In 1970, as Indigenous Australia was getting politically organised, a Koori football club and gym was created in Melbourne called the Fitzroy Stars. Besides being a great football team, winning five premierships in 15 years, the Fitzroy Stars was the hub of Melbourne's Koori community. Lionel Rose was an inaugural Board member of the gym. 

The football club moved between different football leagues throughout Melbourne and achieved a deal of success during this period. The club disbanded in 1997 (when the league in which they were playing collapsed) and re-formed in the Northern Football League in 2008.

Over the past three years, the Stars have been working in partnership with Oxfam Australia to rebuild the Club, which in turn will work to improve the emotional and social health of the Koori population in Melbourne. The club promotes health and fitness, and also helps build self esteem among the players. It offers pathways to employment and education as well as serving as a meeting place for the wider Aboriginal community.

Visit the following page to read more about the Fitzroy Stars 

http://www.oxfam.org.au/explore/indigenous-australia/features/the-fitzroy-stars-football-club

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