Category: Circle Stories

Currently Circle 1 is lending a hand to a family of 7 who fled from the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2010. The father arrived in Australia in 2011 and received a permanent Visa. In the years since he has sponsored his wife (now 70) and each of his children with the last 3 arriving in June 2018. They are living on 1 Pension and 1 Special Benefit. Funds are urgently needed for food, rent, utilities, Metro cards, a shared mobile phone and personal items.

We are looking for donations of $5 per week (or more). These can be paid monthly or up front. We are also seeking once-off amounts e.g. $56 for a student Metro card, $70 for a driving lesson. There will be a review of need in June 2019.

If you would like to know more, email Trish Dundon (Hart), Co-Convenor. To help now, make a donation via our secure GiveNow platform or contact us about making a bank transfer.

Below is an excerpt of the Chairperson’s Report for the 2018 Circle of Friends Australia AGM which illustrates the range of work being done by our circles.

This year the committee has been busy following through on many projects started in previous years.

Partnership with Adelaide University
In 2017 we began working with Adelaide University and Nina from their Education Department spoke at our last AGM. Nina has found students to give English and other tutoring to refugees who have been referred to us by STTARS. The relationship has expanded and we are working to support more students on Adelaide University Refugee Scholarships with both financial support and accommodation in our members homes. The process to expand this accommodation scheme continues as we have to protect both the hosts and the students as they share a home through our system.

Membership of Coalitions
COFA has joined in supporting nationwide actions. We are members of:

• Justice for Refugees and joined them in their Palm Sunday rally and in their Collaborative Advocacy Forum. The priority areas identified for campaigning were:

• End off shore detention

• replace temporary protection visas with permanent visas

• repeal cuts to SRSS, Status Resolution Support Services which provide income and case management for asylum seekers

• Refugee Council of Australia

• End Child Detention Coalition

• Australian Refugee Action Network

We also work alongside other groups

• Rural Australians for Refugees

• Fleurieu Refugee Support Group

• Vigil for refugees on Manus and Nauru on Friday nights on steps of Parliament House

Collaboration
We also collaborate closely with local service providers:

• STTARS – Surviviors of Torture and Trauma Assistance and Rehabilitation Services

• Red Cross

• ARA – Australian Refugee Association

We back them up in their face to face work with our Circles providing finances,visitors, driving practice, English tutoring, furniture and household goods, accommodation, emergency assistance, food and many other needs.

STTARS recently invited us to afternoon tea to thank us for our support of the people they work with. We were given a beautiful afternoon of many conversations, a thank you song in 8 languages by the specially formed STTARS choir, and a multicultural feast.

Great work of the Circles
The Circles continue to do amazing work as we will hear from the Circles reports. The great work of the individual groups adds up to extensive support for many vulnerable asylum seekers and refugees. I especially want to mention Circle of Friends 110 Rapid Response team. They were set up to get requests for emergency and settlement support first and then ask other Circles to help when they couldn’t meet the need. Many Circles contribute financially to their funds as they do not do fundraising themselves, they are too busy providing assistance. Circle 110 assists people in very difficult situations by paying bills for things like rent, electricity, food, medicine and more, and by visiting people in their homes and following through on requests. They need more members to join them.

Thank You
First I’d like to thank the Effective Living Centre and Christ Church for the use of their meeting rooms for our meetings. They are generous hosts.

Thanks to all the generous donors and all the people who have organised, attended or contributed the many fundraising events that all the Circles hold.

Thanks to the businesses who have donated goods and services to our Circles for fundraising.

Thank you to the committee for all their work over the year for COFA. Special thanks to Bruce for his treasury work so that we all know know how much we have to spend and his prompt payments when we send our requests. Also thanks to John for all his secretarial work and to Denise, Lesley and Margaret as committee members on top of the work they do in their own Circles.

The biggest thank you goes to the Circle members with their amazing combined energy to give personal attention to asylum seekers and refugees and ease their way into living in this country.

Contact us if you would like to be involved in the the work we do. Everyone’s support is welcome!

It is always so pleasing to have applications from new groups wishing to be affiliated with COFA. We have two new Circles:

• 113 called Suzanne’s Circle, arising from a very generous grant from a Trust
• 123 called St Chad’s, based at Highgate Anglican Church

We also have a group, Fleurieu Refugee Support Group, who are looking at joining as well. They have set up a short term accommodation register and Circle 7 has already communicated with them about a weekend respite for a refugee mother and daughter. They also have members who are available to conduct swimming lessons and water safety.

Contact us if you would like to learn how you can start a circle or join and existing circle to support refugees and asylum seekers living in your community.

In September last year, COFA received a request from the Clinical Research Manager, Hepatology at the Royal Adelaide Hospital:
“I am writing to you to request help from the “Circle of Friends” for a patient of ours who is an Afghan refugee with end stage cancer. He would like to return home to his family for the last weeks/months of his life. Mr Q has been living in Australia for 5 yrs, working in Bordertown, sending money home to his family to help support them. As he has been unable to work for the past few months he does not have the money to get home, or to continue to support his family. It appears that a one way flight to Kabul which is approx. $1600. Help to fund this flight is urgently sought so that Mr Q can return home before he becomes too ill to fly.”

Circles 110 and 115 were able to respond immediately and the $1,600 was transferred to purchase the airfare. A month later COFA received the following from the QEH Palliative Care Ward who managed Mr Q prior to his departure to Afghanistan.

“Mr A came in today and let us know Mr Q got home to Kabul, Afghanistan, where he was met at the airport by his whole village, about 400 people, like a prime minister (extremely well respected, helpful, hardworking family man) – he was thrilled his family were so very pleased to have him home. He spent a week at home with his family, hospital helped him but said they couldn’t help anymore and sent him home to die, which he did a week after arrival. Family obviously very distressed but extremely grateful. Wife made sure Mr A came in to see us to thank us all for our role in getting him home.

So I wanted to thank you all on behalf of Mr Q. What a great team effort all round. I personally am so proud to have been involved in this and with a lot of luck and a lot of persistence and excellent team work – anything is possible.

Thanks again.

Katie and the Ward Team.”