The
Catholic Weekly
Online
Sydney
1 February 2004
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Dunbar mystery unraveled
New school bid for ‘male-only’ offers
Twins among high achievers
Parents urged to read new books
Steps to safety
Priests honoured
Doing the Lord’s work
Religious named
Pregnant pause: To do or not to do? Oh, baby!
Insurance board post
Caring for needy
Lay Catholics
Editorial: True blue
Letters: Thanks to institute
Conversation: Mons Paul Ssegemogerere, vicar general of Kampala, Uganda - Helping his country tread the right path
Today – God’s gift to us all
Refugee children say ‘thanks’
Chinese community has much to celebrate
The stained-glass detective
Teacher, priest and puppeteer
Riding a wild horse ...
Up there, Ignatius!
Mates give Bulls’ groom Super send-off
Refugee children say ‘thanks’
A ‘thank you’ letter to a child in Orange from a very happy refugee child
By Chris Lindsay
The donation of Christmas toys by Catholics in the Orange area for refugee children in Sydney – as reported in The Catholic Weekly of December 28 (pictured) – was a huge success, but the Mercy Refugee Service won’t be extending the concept.
It just doesn’t have the resources.
“The gifts were a lovely thing to do at Christmas, and the families just loved the toys, but the idea won’t be extended – it is a bit beyond our scope,” says Belinda Lucas, Mercy Refugee Service project co-ordinator of volunteers.
“But it would be great if another organisation took up the idea for other needy children.
“For example, if some manufacturer heard of our Christmas work and offered us 600 teddy bears it would be beyond our ability and resources to deal with them.
“We might say: ‘We can take 20, but give the rest to St Vincent de Paul; they are the ones with the capacity to distribute that many’.”
The main job of the Mercy Refugee Service’s volunteers is to help refugee families settle into life in Australia.
“The service concentrates on volunteers who help refugee families in a personal way, who are prepared to ‘walk a journey with the family’,” says Belinda.
“If the refugees are facing challenges or struggles, we link them with people to help.
“We would always welcome financial donations, because that would broaden our work and assist in helping particularly vulnerable families.
“It is useful to have material things to give them but that is not our main purpose.
“We try to do things like find services they need such as play groups, child care, schools and libraries to make their lives in Australia more functional.
“For us, it is about relationships more than anything.
“Volunteers form friendships with refugee families.
“We currently have 80 active volunteers, and over the life of the project we have had 220.
“We recruit about 40 a year, and last year we supported about 420 refugees in 100 or so families.
“People can help by becoming volunteers.
“We have a two-day and two-evening training course.
“But before that those interested are interviewed and we explain exactly what is required.
“We are not a lobby group; we concentrate on the welfare of the individuals and families.”
The Mercy Refugee Service can be reached by telephone on (02) 9564 1911 or you can email the service at mrsproject@mercy.org.au