IN BRIEF (13 January) - Snapshots from around the territory
IN BRIEF (13 January) - Snapshots from around the territory
13 January 2023
Salvation Army volunteers Julie Otremba and Kris Berevis at Perth Airport, ready to depart for Broome, where they will assist Major Pam Marshall.
Flood emergency relief on the ground in Broome
Two Salvation Army Emergency Services (SAES) volunteers travelled to Broome yesterday to assist with flood-relief efforts in north-west Western Australia.
Julie Otremba and Kris Berevis flew in to help Major Pam Marshall with the provision of financial support to families and individuals displaced by the floods. Pam is Corps Officer at Karratha, and drove 800km north to Broome yesterday to set up relief operations at the civic centre.
Salvation Army volunteers Kris and Julie with OIC Senior Sgt Dean Bailey, who is assisting the Salvos team engage and connect with communities in Broome and beyond.
Some displaced people have been evacuated to Broome and others to alternate locations while the waters recede and the clean-up begins. In the days ahead, The Salvation Army team will connect with staff from the Department of Communities and the police, who will travel to outlying indigenous communities through the Kullarri Patrol, a community safety initiative.
An SAES spokesperson said that, initially, financial support will be offered while at the same time, work will continue with the Department of Communities and other support agencies and indigenous groups to ensure all recovery needs are being met. This may take a week or two, and a Salvation Army presence will be at the Broome Civic Centre between 10am and 4pm.
A weather system caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie centred near Halls Creek on Tuesday 3 January moved slowly west throughout the week, causing major flooding from Fitzroy Crossing to Broome. In some places, the system dumped over 500mm of rain in just over a 24-hour period, isolating communities with over 300 people displaced and widespread damage to infrastructure that will take many months to replace.
South Australian women get creative
About 50 women attended Create Camp at Nunyara Conference Centre.
Women from corps around South Australia gathered at the picturesque Nunyara Conference Centre recently for Create Camp. The camp was a celebration of creativity, friendship and faith, which also gave the women a chance to connect with God and each other.
Campers met for coffee, craft and creativity, workshops and worship. Aux-Lieutenant Rosy Keane, Secretary for Spiritual Life Development for the Australia Territory, led the campers through workshops on learning to tell their stories and listening to their emotions.
The weekend was organised by Event Coordinator Liv Hateley and many leaders contributed to events and electives.
Mandurah brings Christmas Cheer to Thailand
Community members listen to the gospel at Fresh Hope outreach service.
Mandurah Corps in Western Australia made a small donation to Fresh Hope Church members in Phuket, Thailand, to enable them to go ahead with their Christmas outreach event.
Fresh Hope Church is located in the northern region of Phuket Island, away from the tourist areas. Very few church members had much work last year because of COVID, so they didn’t have the funds to proceed with their Christmas plans.
The church is the only Christian church in the area, which has a majority Buddhist and Muslim population..jpg&width=300&height=217)
Pastor Ranee delivers the gospel message at Fresh Hope Christmas outreach service.
Around 150 community members attended the Christmas outreach event. As well as sharing the gospel, the service included music, food and entertainment. As a result, 32 community members requested follow-up contact to discuss the Christian faith.
Mandurah Corps has financially supported Fresh Hope Church since June 2022. Overseas Mission Coordinator Barry Austin had a long-term connection with the church and approached the corps to step in to support it through the difficult times.
“The church could not survive financially without our support at the moment,” Barry said. “It was great to see such a fantastic response to the Christmas outreach event.”
Unplugged ... church in the park
Perth Fortress Corps has extended its Church in the Park activity for three Sundays from 1 January.
“We like to use January slow down period as a time to explore different ways of doing church,” said Major Deborah Robinson, Corps Officer Perth Fortress. “Hyde Park is just down the road from the corps, and it is so lovely to be worshipping God in his good, fresh air.”
Many corps members are away in January, and the worship teams need a break, so the service is trimmed down to about half an hour. It includes a few readings, hymns (often sung a cappella), sharing time, a brief reflection, morning tea and chat.
“It’s a bit of a witness too, because heaps of people pause, listen to our singing, and a few even ask what we are doing,” Deborah said. “The majority of corps members who come appreciate the more laid-back and relaxed approach.”
Making it Happen
The South Australia/Northern Territory Division raised more than $42,800 from January 2021 to November 2022 for the current Making it Happen Project. This project has been supporting The Waterhole community centre in Alice Springs and other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women experiencing hardship and injustice.
The Making it Happen project was supported by Salvation Army mission expressions across the division, with a number of supporters coming together to raise funds for the important initiative.
The Making it Happen initiative continues into 2023 with new leaders and project targets to be announced soon.
Learning and prayer at Glanville Hall
The Glanville Hall centre and (on right) a list of names of boys who were residents at St Francis Boys’ Home between 1946 and 1959.
Christian leaders from various churches in the Semaphore-Le Fevre Peninsula region gathered at Glanville Hall to hear Maria Anderson, Divisional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Engagement Coordinator, speak about the history of the site. The function centre was once the St Francis Home for Boys, which housed young Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students from Central Australia while they completed their education.
Maria shared how these students, including Charles Perkins, Harold Thomas and John Moriarty, became influential leaders while also experiencing the grief of living away from family and Country as well as an ongoing lack of acceptance within both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Communities.
The group reflected together and shared in a prayer of healing and reconciliation. The group looks forward to working together in the future.
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