Victorian Bushfire
- Meet Glenda Hare
- The Salvation Army helps bring some Christmas cheer
- Primary school gets back to nature
- Flowerdale Volunteers Appreciation lunch
- Seymour team keeps on truckin'
- Centre providing support for the long term
- Volunteers assist with rebuilding fences
- Helping turn houses into homes
- Appreciation dinner for volunteers
- Not just another day in the office
Meet Glenda Hare
Glenda Hare commenced as Project Manager of the Salvos Youth & Music Project in November 2009. She brings with her a wealth of experience gained from 45 years of active involvement in music and theatre.
Joining her first band at just 12 years of age, Glenda's love of the performing arts lead her to taking roles onstage, as well as behind the scenes. This love put her on a natural progression to teaching, which she quickly developed a passion for.
Glenda's career in music and theatre has included working in programs both in Australia and abroad. From coordinating and producing events, and tutoring, to writing and recording music, her knowledge and experience in all aspects that are key to the success of the Salvos Youth & Music Project will be imperative to its success.
The Salvos Youth & Music Project is being rolled out in 15 bushfire-affected communities across Victoria. Participation is free and youth will learn how to make and produce their own music. Opportunities for live performances, both on a small and large scale, will also be provided to participants.
With the first sites kicking off the program this month, Glenda and her team of youth workers and volunteers are looking forward to seeing youth starting to benefit. Learning music skills, socialising with other youth and building confidence are just some of the outcomes expected from the project.
The Salvos Youth & Music Project has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the Sony Foundation.
The Salvation Army helps bring some Christmas cheer
In December 2009, The Salvation Army delivered a Christmas gift initiative to people whose homes were lost or severely damaged in the Black Saturday fires. These were distributed to residents through The Salvation Army’s four bushfire recovery centres, located at Seymour, Whittlesea, Traralgon and Healesville.
The initiative was very well received by residents going through a difficult time of having Christmas without loved ones or their homes, as well as being confronted by another bushfire season and the first anniversary of Black Saturday.
Garrison Pearse, Bushfire Projects Manager with The Salvation Army, said that demand for the Christmas gift was so high that one relief centre had to replenish its supplies within only a few days of the launch. The Whittlesea Bushfire Recovery Centre reported seeing over 50 clients each day in relation to the initiative.
Bushfire recovery teams worked tirelessly to distribute the Christmas gifts and were deeply touched by the feedback given by recipients. Many recipients were emotional and all were extremely grateful. They also passed on their thanks to everyone who donated to The Salvation Army’s bushfire appeal in early 2009 and made the Christmas gift possible.
Below is an extract from one of the letters of thanks received by bushfire recovery teams.
I would like to thank the Gentlemen that organised the Kmart and IGA vouchers, If you could please send on our thanks. I am a very proud person and never ask for help, no matter how desperate the situation is, I have a loving and caring family that help where they can. He ( I can’t recall his name) was so beautiful and considerate, Santa wasn’t going to have much and he as well as The Salvation Army were like our Guardian Angel’s the presents and food had more than one meaning to us this Christmas.
Around $1.5 million was assigned to the initiative, which provided some respite at a difficult time for many families.
Marysville carols hit the right note
The Waverley Temple Youth Band has been playing at the Marysville Combined Churches Christmas Carol Service for the past 15 years. Held in Gallipoli Park’s picturesque rotunda, the band considered the carol service as one of the year’s highlights.
It was with great sadness that the Waverley Temple Youth Band heard the Gallipoli Park rotunda had been destroyed in the tragic Black Saturday fires. It began looking at ways it could assist its friends who take part in the carol service each year, and give something back to the community.
The band decided to donate all money raised at an upcoming performance in Mildura last March to the Marysville Anglican Church Bushfire Recovery Fund. This included all ticket sales, which the band matched dollar-for-dollar, and other donations. A donation of $3000 was presented to the fund following the performance.
While performing at the Mildura concert, the Waverley Temple Youth Band was approached by a member of the Kiwanis Group, who indicated that the group would like to assist with the rebuilding of the rotunda. Thanks to the support of people such as the Kiwanis Group, the rotunda was erected in time for December’s carol service.
The Waverley Temple Youth Band again hit the stage in 2009 for the Marysville Combined Churches Christmas Carol Service. This season’s performance took on an even greater personal significance for the band, which was thrilled to take part. Most importantly, the carol service provided the community with the return of a piece of normality to their lives.
Christmas is a very difficult time for people grieving or under great stress, as it highlights the loss suffered for many families. Events such as the Marysville Combined Churches Carol Service provide an opportunity for grieving communities to have some respite.
The carol service was a great success, with the audience enjoying performances from a mix of local and non-local musicians.
Primary school gets back to nature
Chum Creek Primary School is now expanding garden beds and constructing a memorial to friends and family lost in the February fires, thanks to the generosity of fellow Victorian school students and community groups.
Students from 20 schools located across suburban Melbourne participated in the 2009 Canstruction Melbourne event. Although the event’s focus was on science and maths education, part of the day also included a component to raise money for bushfire-affected families and communities. Students selected the Chum Creek Primary School community garden project as the recipient of a $6000 grant.
The gathering, facilitated with the assistance of Planet Give and The Salvation Army, gave students a voice to decide where they thought the money raised would be of most benefit. When students decided on a garden in a bushfire-affected area, where people could relax with nature and friends, was the best use of funds, Salvation Army Envoy Graeme Mawson, based at Healesville, knew just the school to put forward.
The Salvation Army’s Bushfire Relief Fund and Planet Give’s online community of donors also contributed to the final donation.
Michael Corr, Chum Creek Primary School principal, and students received the donation on behalf of the school, saying it would be of great assistance for the school’s vegie gardens. An automatic watering system, to help sustain the garden over school holidays, is at the top of the list for the grant money. A community memorial garden for friends and family members who perished will also be constructed at the school.
Flowerdale Volunteers Appreciation lunch
The Salvation Army hosted a lunch on Friday, 18 December 2009, to express appreciation to the team of volunteers involved in material aid assistance to the Flowerdale community following the Black Saturday fires.
The lunch was held, appropriately, at the local hotel, the scene of a heroic stand against the flames on 7 February 2009.
Bushfire Recovery Manager for The Salvation Army, David Barker, said the volunteers had stepped up during circumstances not of their choosing. They had assisted their community by providing material aid in a caring and compassionate way. Certificates of Appreciation were handed out to acknowledge and recognise these volunteers’ contributions. Diane Linskens, a key organiser of material aid in Flowerdale, spoke of her deep admiration for this band of volunteers that had formed around her. She said she had seen selfless acts of service from this wonderful team.
After community consultations, the material aid service was transitioned-out in October 2009. The Salvation Army continues to support the Flowerdale community with contributions to community transport (community bus) and other community projects, including the Salvos Youth & Music Project, and have also commenced discussions on a small business recovery concept.
Seymour team keeps on truckin'
Since opening in the week following the February bushfires, The Salvation Army’s Seymour warehouse has been the coordination point for much of the material and psychological aid in the Murrindindi and Mitchell Shires.
The site’s operations, run by the region’s Pathways Bushfire Recovery Program, support communities from Wallan to Alexandra, and as far south as Flowerdale.
Central to the work run out of this office is the material aid delivered twice-weekly from the warehouse. Michael Doyle, warehouse supervisor at Seymour, said that current items in demand included fridges, kitchen appliances and beds. While demand fluctuates, currently around 30 requests for material aid are received each week. Earlier in the year, there were periods in which over 100 requests were being received each week.
The truck deliveries not only provide material relief, but also an opportunity for residents getting their lives back on track to chat and receive further support. For this reason, Jodie Harris, a community development and outreach worker with Pathways, and other support staff often go on the delivery rounds to provide emotional support and to connect victims with additional services.
Visits to affected residents not only assist those people in their recovery journey, but also provide The Salvation Army’s Pathways staff and volunteers with important information about the most pressing issues and needs of people in need. This information can then be used to determine future programs and activities to coordinate, as well as people to visit in future.
Despite the constant flow of material aid from Seymour since almost immediately following the fires, it is expected to continue to be coordinated from the Seymour warehouse for approximately the next twelve months.
Centre providing support for the long term
Whittlesea has been at the epicentre of the bushfire response since it became an emergency services staging ground on 7 February 2009. However, the activities coordinated from the town have changed as the needs of people affected by the fires have evolved.
Simon Smith, a chaplain with The Army, has been based at the Whittlesea Bushfire Recovery Centre since August. In his time there, he has witnessed the community’s recovery continue on its long and winding road. He says the constant pressure from the recovery process is taking its toll on bushfire victims. “We are now seeing people starting to hit the wall,” says Simon.
Maintaining a constant presence has been imperative to building strong relationships with members of the community. Simon says being a familiar face has encouraged affected residents to open up to him and other Salvation Army representatives. Libby Matkin, also based at the Whittlesea Bushfire Recovery Centre, and Simon both spend several days each week up the mountain in addition to their work in Whittlesea, with Libby providing financial counselling to residents who have requested support or have been referred to her.
Looking forward, the Whittlesea Bushfire Recovery Centre will continue to adapt itself to meet the current and future needs of the region. As well as continuing to provide material aid, such as clothing, the focus has been switching towards further psychological and expertise support. The current building will also continue to be refurbished to support a drop-in centre style area, where people can come in to discuss their situation and needs, or just to have a chat and a cuppa.
The Whittlesea Bushfire Recovery Centre is located at 38 Laurel St, Whittlesea.
Volunteers assist with rebuilding fences
The Samaritan’s Purse fencing trailers, sponsored by the Salvation Army, continue to assist property owners rebuild fences destroyed by the Black Saturday fires.
Working in conjunction with Blaze Aid volunteers, Accenture staff spent a day out of the office, rebuilding fences on an affected property near Kinglake. The replacement of fences provides affected residents with a secure space for livestock and contributes to the recovery of local industry.
The Salvation Army has sponsored nine Samaritan’s Purse fencing trailers, working around Bendigo, Gippsland, Marysville, Kinglake and adjoining communities. Each trailer contains tools, materials and all other materials needed for fencing.
Other companies that have provided volunteers to assist with fencing projects include Optus, Ford, ANZ, The University of Melbourne and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The Salvation Army coordinates volunteer groups to assist in areas of need. To register the interest of your group or organisation, contact Glenyse Guinan on (03) 8878 2408, or glenyse.guinan@aus.salvationarmy.org.
Helping turn houses into homes
Many residents from the Kinglake area who have been displaced by the bushfires have since taken up residence in a temporary village on the edge of the township. Volunteers recently spent a day at work in the temporary village, trying to make the site a little more homely for residents.
Volunteers from Kleenheat used modified wine barrels to house garden beds for each home, which residents can now utilise according to their own taste. A selection of plants was also provided for residents to choose from.
The temporary garden beds will brighten up the village and allow residents to personalise their homes. The temporary village at Kinglake is home to around 90 local residents, providing security for individuals and families while they get back on their feet.
The Salvation Army is coordinating volunteer opportunities for groups and companies, to assist in the bushfire recovery. For more information, contact Glenyse Guinan on (03) 8878 2408, or glenyse.guinan@aus.salvationarmy.org.
Appreciation dinner for volunteers
Melbourne Central Division recently hosted an ‘appreciation dinner’ to thank volunteers for their work in bushfire affected Whittlesea.
“The first request for a chaplaincy team came through at 9 p.m. on Saturday 7 February. Within 30 minutes, a team had been organised and was on its way to the
Whittlesea Showgrounds. Nobody could have anticipated what lay ahead,” shared Major Jenny Barnard.
“The continual support of so many volunteers since that day has been phenomenal; they all became Salvos,” she said.
Certificates of appreciation were presented, with special thanks made to the ladies from Riddells Creek known as ‘The Sandwich Makers’, who tirelessly prepared meals for those in need.
Not just another day in the office
Ford employees swapped cars for shovels for a day to help Kinglake businesses get back on their feet. Despite fog and rain, sleeves were rolled up as they assisted local residents remove burnt out vegetation, fencing and timber from a property, and lay mulch to nurture new commercial garden beds.
The Ford team is just one of a number of groups that have donated their time to assist with various tasks in bushfire-affected areas. These volunteers have complemented the existing Salvation Army soldiers and volunteers who’ve continued to work tirelessly with these communities.
David Barker is our Bushfire Recovery Manager. He has spent a great deal of time visiting affected communities and developing an understanding of the difficulties they are experiencing.
