Appealing for your support
August marks the start of the annual ADRA Appeal doorknock campaign in Australia. Candice Jaques reports on how the generosity of Australians is helping those in need.
Starting this month, volunteer ADRA Appeal collectors will be knocking on doors around Australia, collecting donations for the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA). And your support is vital.
Around Australia, ADRA provides a range of projects to help those in need, including drug and alcohol counselling, at-risk youth intervention programs, women’s refuges, community centres, disaster response and second-hand shops.
Much of this work is possible through the generosity of everyday Australians, who open their doors to volunteer collectors, recognising that their gift can make an extraordinary difference to the lives of others.
Every year, ADRA Appeal donations are used to provide local community projects such as these:
Queensland: The Slacks Creek ADRA Centre in Brisbane offers a range of free services, such as counselling, computer training, literacy classes and food parcels for those in crisis situations.
Another ADRA Centre in Gympie provides support to low-income families and children, victims of domestic violence and those struggling with addictions. This centre offers free counselling, a men’s helpline and care packages for children who have been removed from their parents.
NSW: The Blacktown ADRA Centre in Sydney provides free support services such as counselling, referrals, drug-intervention programs and adult literacy education for those struggling with unemployment, abuse, addiction, depression and relationship problems. And an innovative playgroup for single mums in Broken Hill includes the involvement of community professionals, such as nurses, counsellors and police officers to help increase understanding of child health, conflict resolution, what to do in an emergency and parenting skills.
Victoria: An exciting program in Mildura helps at-risk youth through adventure therapy techniques. This project, called “Get’n’High on Life,”
uses hot-air ballooning activities to teach skills such as teamwork, communication, respect and healthy self esteem. Adventure therapy activities are useful in engaging young people and helping to identify those who may have issues with trust, self-worth and connectedness.
Tasmania: In Moonah ADRA’s support of “Chance on Main” provides atrisk youth and young offenders with vocational, personal and educational training and skills, through practical training, mentoring, and life skills and job readiness programs.
South Australia: ADRA’s Mai Palya (“good food”) Indigenous health project meets health needs by providing training in basic cooking and nutrition.
This project helps to combat health issues caused by poor nutrition, such as heart disease, kidney disease and diabetes.
Western Australia: A resettlement program for refugees from Africa provides material support, such as clothing and food, while also providing driving lessons and conversational English education.
Rolling out across the country, ADRA Australia’s “Getting Connected” program provides tools for high schools to help build resilience in the lives of young people. “Getting Connected,”
which utilises the skills of local community volunteers, provides opportunities for students to consider and address issues of communication, feelings, bullying and conflict resolution among other things. A mentoring program has also been developed that can either compliment “Getting Connected”
or be used alone. “B Somebody 2 Someone” is designed to help people either become a mentor or find a mentor and develop mentoring programs in schools. The program is based on the premise that mentoring is a natural, healthy and necessary part of human development, and not just for at-risk students or those with learning difficulties.
In addition to national projects, ADRA Appeal donations are also used to support work in the Pacific.
As volunteer ADRA Appeal collectors visit your community this year, please consider how you can partner with ADRA to touch lives for the better, or use the contact details below to make your donation.
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