Volunteers are our lifeblood

Last Saturday St John’s Care (SJC) held an Australiana Trivia night to raise funds for our Christmas Hampers this year.

We are hoping to make 500 hampers with the money raised. The night was a great success with lots of laughter whilst our thinking caps were on!

We would like to thank everyone who attended. They contributed towards making Christmas a little bit special for lots of our clients. It means so much to us to have the support of the community for our fundraising events.

Another person who is a huge support to SJC is Fred Fawkes. Fred is a Northside Rotarian and a retired police officer who spends his life helping others. Just recently, we managed to house a few homeless people into Salvos Housing.

One man in particular had lost his house as he couldn’t afford to pay his mortgage and the bank took possession of it. The man, who we shall call Henry, found himself in the position of having lots of furniture but no house!

Our Community Worker, Steph, contacted Fred and with the help of his Rotary friends, assisted Henry to empty his house. Belconnen Rotary paid for it to be stored at Storage King who very kindly gave a substantial discount.

All the excess furniture that Henry couldn’t fit into a unit was taken away by Fred and given to others he had heard about on his travels who were also in need .

Once Henry was allocated a house through Salvos Housing, Fred was there to help him move in. Fred spends a lot of his ‘spare time’ collecting redundant beds from hospitals and giving them to ex-patients who need them at home.

Fred recently delivered three hospital beds and other items of furniture to SJC clients who were starting from scratch.

Earlier this year, 80-year-old Alice was housed by ACT Housing. It was Fred who collected and delivered all the furniture donated to her by the community.

We would like to say a massive thank you to Fred and his Rotary friends for helping our clients in times of need.

SJC is looking for a volunteer Chef/Cook with a safe food handling certificate to lead a team of volunteers for our Christmas Day lunch.

We serve up to 350 people from all walks of life, who would otherwise not have a Christmas meal. Most of the food is supplied ready cooked. Therefore, the chef’s role is mainly focussed on managing the many volunteers for food preparation and service.

If you are able to help or you know someone who can fill this position, please get them to contact Jason our Programs and Fundraising Manager on 6248 7771 or programs@stjohnscare.org.au

Items required: Packet pasta meals, shampoo and conditioner, 1 litre long life milk, powdered milk and honey.

Drop off your donations at St John's Care Monday to Friday 9.30 am to 2 pm. Your non-perishable food donations can be placed in the bin outside the St John's hall Saturday and Sunday between 10 am and 4 pm.