Until the Drought Breaks
Australia is in its worst drought in 100 years, strongly affecting rural areas. Candice Jaques looks at what ADRA is doing to help farmers ease the burden.
As Australia faces its worst drought in more than a century, many families struggle to meet their basic needs. Water points on farms are drying up, leaving little for animal and human consumption.
As bores and water tanks dry up, families are forced to drink the potable but unpalatable supplies that sit at the bottom of tanks and wells. Even boiling the water for tea cannot disguise the bad taste. And the impact of the drought extends further.
The lack of rain in Australia’s eastern states has also drastically impacted crops and feed, forcing farmers to sell livestock because they cannot afford to keep them. Not only does this limit productivity now, but it also affects the future income prospects of farming families.
As farmers struggle to make ends meet, they cut back on basic household items, sacrificing personally to keep the farm business running. In response to the need, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Australia is supporting initiatives to provide relief to farming families. One such project, called “Operation Spring Boost,” has provided support to communities in north-western New South Wales.
Facilitated by generous volunteers, Operation Spring Boost has seen almost 70 “pamper hampers” distributed to families around Narromine, Nyngan, Tottenham and Cobar. Volunteers from Seventh-day Adventist churches in Sydney packed nearly 50 hampers for drought-affected families, with volunteers from Narromine Adventist and Uniting churches contributing a further 20 packs.
“We’ve done this before,” says Sydney ADRA volunteer Brigitte Perik.
“And we had hoped that the drought would have eased. But when our contact in Narromine told us that conditions were still tough, we were happy to help out again.” The “pamper hampers” included items that families may no longer be able to afford, such as soap, shampoo, deodorant, biscuits, canned fruit and cake mixes. “We decided to send what some might consider luxuries, instead of daily items, because we didn’t want to have a negative impact on local businesses,” explaines Brigitte.
“People are still purchasing the absolute essentials, but local shops are also struggling in the drought. The local businesses need to function in these conditions too, so we only sent the things people have now taken off their shopping lists.” To continue supporting the needs of local economies, ADRA contracted a Narromine-based transport company to move the Sydney hampers to Narromine.
Volunteers in Narromine and Cobar then distributed the packs to families in surrounding areas.
Operation Spring Boost is one of several initiatives ADRA is supporting that help drought-affected people. In the past year, ADRA has provided more than $A30,000 to support farming families in New South Wales.
In partnership with the Department of Primary Industries Drought Support Workers, who assess the needs of families, ADRA has assisted 60 households with financial support for their utilities commitments. And ADRA is committed to helping out as long as is necessary.
“We hope we don’t have to do this again, because the drought has eased,” says Brigitte.
“But, if needed, I wouldn’t hesitate to help again. My passion is to help people who are having a tough time. And through this I’ve met other people with the same passion. We know we can’t stop the drought, but we do want to show our support and let people know that we care about them.” In supporting initiatives such as Operation Spring Boost, ADRA aims to boost the morale of people struggling under the weight of severe drought. Although it does not completely eliminate the effects of this natural disaster, efforts such as these go a long way in sharing hope with those who often see no hope at all.
By supporting ADRA, you too can share hope with those in need and ease the hardship of disaster.
Home - Archive - Topics - Podcast - Subscribe - Special Offers - About Signs - Contact Us - Links
 |
 |
Copyright © 2004-2009 Seventh-day Adventist Church (SPD) Limited ACN 093 117 689
