Doing a good deed

[Skids]

The company I work for now, IGO, do a heap of community work and are always after volunteers to help with various things.

Just recently they made a commitment to St Bart's House to provide financial support as well as team participation in events.


https://stbarts.org.au/

St Bart’s is one of Perth’s leading not-for-profit providers of accommodation and outreach services for vulnerable Western Australians experiencing or at risk of homelessness, mental health challenges, trauma and hardship.

IGO's first employee participation event is on the 17th of August. 15 of us will camp out on the streets with homeless people and listen to some of their stories. We'll be given a piece of cardboard to spend the night on and then we'll cook up a breakfast for everyone.

I'm looking forward to the experience and am wrapped the organisers have given me the ok to bring my dog along for the night.

[Skids]

The next one is for an organisation (Eatup) that helps distribute food to kids in schools who don't have a feed. Kelly is going to join me on this one. September 4th.

Learn more about EatUp, and then make and pack sandwiches which will be delivered by EatUp directly to schools for the 1 in 5 Aussie kids experiencing hunger.

20%... that figure blew me away.

Kel has told me previously of some kids not having any breakfast before school and/or nothing more than an old piece of fruit, if anything in their lunchbox. I didn't realise it was at such a high rate.

Kel and some of the other teachers have always taken bread and cook toast early. They also have a fridge in common areas where kids can grab a bite.

[stui magpie]

Nice work mate, how did the sleep out go?

[Skids]

[pietillidie]

Thought this was a fab if sad little story:

[stui magpie]

^

You sucked me into reading a Guardian link. I'm somewhat glad I did, it was a good story, if sad. The Covid lockdowns had a big impact on lots of people.

Good on you looking after the people on your street, what exactly does that involve? I'm an anti social cnut myself and only know the names of 3 of my neighbours (one couple and one old woman who was here before me over 30 years ago).

[pietillidie]

^I'd written up a list of things but deleted them worried some were too revealing of personal things going on. But stuff like teaching people how to park and mow the lawn, and looking in on old folk. We also have political refugees from Hong Kong in the street whom I've welcomed and helped get the lay of the land, while I caught some scumbag stealing parcels, so now everyone collects deliveries for each other. I regularly look in on one elderly woman with suspected dementia, and organised for another elderly couple to help her.

I think I mentioned helping another elderly woman who'd got a nasty phishing call saying her son had been in an accident. Luckily, she felt comfortable enough to knock on the door, so I was able to help before they got her personal details.

I think the trick is just being friendly and consistent and taking an interest, so people know you're there. We also have the best flowers in the street, which the oldies love! In fact, among the advice I gave to the Hong Kong refugees was to take up some of the interests of the older generation. My beloved one grows flowers from seed, and the oldies love seeing a Korean growing their favourites, so the refugees seeing her do that, and the passers by talking to her, would've been the best example of all.

(The government doesn't seem to give practical advice like this to new comers, which drives me mental, as it's both effective and a lot of fun. No doubt far-left loonies would make a deal of it on some clueless theoretical basis, having never lived in other cultures, and racists ruin everything for everyone, but I wish I had an hour with every refugee or immigrant to help set them up to win friends and influence people. Asians are very practical and love learning that kind of thing, it's just that no one ever cares enough to leave their own obsessions at the door. You've just got to get in before others poison the well. Perhaps I'll take that up when I retire.)

Everyone needs a hand at different times. Old people naturally need help with different things, but I've learned that young people need as much help as they often work hard and don't have that much support. So, they may not have had anyone teach them how to do things like mow the lawn or park confidently.

It's such a fab little street, like something out of time. Great people with the odd scumbag passing through to the main road (though less scumbags than when we first came, as I called the cops a couple of times).

Today, we walked a neighbour's dog, which is a mutual win as we love dogs. The owner works hard and has a tough job, and needs to get out and socialise at that age, so that's something else we can do.

[think positive]

thats a great story mate, cheers


Yesterday, on the way home from Canon, I stopped at an old out of the way boat ramp, that has little fishing huts, its a real grotty little place just off the road leading into Williamstown, i love it but ive been warned to be careful there. always feels ok to me! set my new camera up to take some test shots, and have a play, hopped out the car, and see a man id say in his 80's, stooped and leaning on a golf club. He yells out, i go to chat, even with hearing aides, it can be hard!! he asks about my camera, and the stickers on my car, Hes Collingwood too! Tells me he had a garage in Newport, so i told him i did my apprenticeship at GMH! 40 min later, im itching to shoot but He kept talking!! eventually i said i got to go cook dinner, but i hope we meet again.

pretty sure I made his day, damn sure He made mine xxx

Time is the most precious thing you can give to older citizens.

cheers

[LaurieHolden]

^ bloody oath Jo, must give ensure we don't forget them. Always made me mellow when I'd do my Meals on Wheels runs knowing that for many, I was one of the few visits they'd have for days. So many just wanted to chat, but you run the risk of delaying meals and the schedule goes tits up. And they'd let you know if you were late, believe me.

Last Sunday I was going for my walk, on one of several of my usual routes. I always stop to chat to 'Ferret', an ageing Tigers supporter who never fails to be outside having a dart. He fills me in on the goings on in his part of the 'hood, he's always got a good 'story'. He did a few stretches in HM Pentridge back in the day so some of them get a bit colourful. I've been encouraging him to write down or record his story.
That walk takes me to a local pâtisserie where I get my 'real bread' fix. Before I made it there, I heard this lady calling out across the Street. I crossed over and she asked me if I could walk her to Church. She gave me the venue and I told her I wasn't Catholic, but she thought it'd be OK this time. Anyway, Claire was 92 and a great old stick. They were already into the service by the time I walked her there, she was a bit breathless on arrival. The local parishioners all knew her and thanked me, I thought I might have been Canonised as a result, but I suspect they knew I was a proddy frog and I made haste before they started to pass the plate around. (I remember as a young boy my Uncle used to say in the Catholic churches they pass it around twice. As I kid I could never work it out. )

[stui magpie]

^

Nice work Jo and laurie.

Had to take Mum over to Greensie Plaza to get a new set of reading glasses. Drive over, plonk her in the wheelchair, got the glasses sorted in 10 minutes so took her for a wander through Target and Kmart, all clothes for younger people so nothing she liked. Had lunch there at Degani, then took her to a shop that has older womens clothes and she bought herself 2 new summer tops. Good day.

Then this arvo had to meet the daughter in Eltham to pick up a new couch she bought on Facebook Marketplace. It's a modular 2 piece thing, very nice for the price. All the cushions went in the back of her SUV and the 2 base pieces in the back of the ute, tailgate open, ratchet strap to hold it down.

Stuffed if I'm driving to Glen Waverly and back in peak hour so the pieces are standing on their end in my hallway til Friday when she's working from home and I'll take them over and help her put them in the house.

[think positive]

Laurie they people around you are so lucky to have you xxx

Nice Stu, looks like retirement is killing you!
Cheers!

[stui magpie]

^

I thought my days of helping people move were done.

Took the couch over to her place this morning, 2 base pieces, got it out and loaded myself using brains instead of brawn mostly. Still had to pick up one 2M piece to stack it on top of the other one already in the ute before I could tie them down and deliver it.

Helped her get it in the house and set it all up, had a chat, then while I was there fixed the grandsons bike. he'd had a bingle, straight over the handlbars and it was now loose and he couldn't ride it. Borrowed some Allen keys, 5 minutes, all fixed.

[pietillidie]

Nice work, all.

That reminds me to add to the thread that a lot of people have helped mum back in Tatura in my absence with similar things. She's in quite a bit of pain physically, but people have been great helping her lift and shift things, whether relatives in the region or townies.

When we last visited, one of mum's friends, who sadly passed away recently, got his second car in working order and lent it to us for the whole month, which blew me away.

[stui magpie]

^

People in the bush are good like that.

[Dark Beanie]

Yep, when the floods happened last year, mum evacuated from Mooroopna to one of my sisters in Shepp.

Neighbour who stayed kept on eye on her place and sent updates & photos so she knew what was going on and her place was safe (he had his shottie in case of looters).

Back from my regular volunteer gig.
Help out at the uniform shop at the local primary school on Tuesday mornings.
Been doing it since the kids were there, about 15 years now.
Good to help out and I enjoy chatting to people although I do wonder how some people get throgh life when they can't even make a decision about the colour of an art smock for their kid.