by MOSS
More than 30,000 Victorians are homeless, an increase of 17 per cent over the past five years.
In Greater Melbourne, many of those sleeping rough are being pushed into the northern suburbs where ‘tent cities’ are becoming increasingly common.
Merri Outreach Support Service CEO Mark Goodie told Raf Epstein about a new 2-year program to deliver support with Merri-bek City Council.
“I had no one to rely on, no family, no friends, not a single soul.” – Maya* (name changed to maintain privacy).
In 2015, Maya was sponsored by her Australian husband to move to Melbourne. Her dream to move to a new country and build a life with her partner quickly turned into a nightmare when he became violent, abusive, and controlling. He began to disempower her financially, emotionally and mentally, and even blocked her from bringing her children from Somalia to Australia.
Coercive control in domestic relationships is sadly becoming more and more common amongst migrant and refugee communities, leaving the abusee in a totally vulnerable state. Maya was relieved to escape the relationship, but it meant that she was left sleeping rough on a stranger’s garage floor for over two years.
Maya met the criteria to enter the Crisis Response Program at Merri Outreach Support Service in 2019, where she was assigned a specialist Case Manager named Kate. Kate has now been working with Maya over the last three years.
With Kate’s unwavering commitment to her case plan, Maya was referred to emergency housing which she has now lived in for two years.
Kate also connected Maya to a legal service that assisted her to gain sponsorship for her three children, who are now thriving in Australia. Maya’s 12-year-old son even recently won the 2021 John Carlyle Award for best student, an award which was open to all schools across the northern suburbs of Melbourne.
Kate is truly proud of how far Maya has come.
“This is what sustains you, when you see the trajectory from first meeting a client, to them achieving most of their goals,” she says.
As a Case Manager, she sees herself as an advocate – someone who connects her clients in with services to achieve their own goals, supporting them to be the captain of their own ship.
Maya has been so thankful of the support she received from Merri Outreach Support Service, that she now wants to study social work herself, to help others in the same situation she was in. At the moment she is studying English and focussing on supporting her children as best she can as a single parent.
Reflecting on her experience, she has said:
“The kind of care I received throughout this program is beyond what I asked for. I now have stability for myself and my children. For anyone in my situation, my advice is to find a supporter that really seeks to understand you and your needs – in Kate, I have found the best supporter I could have ever hoped for. I see MOSS as an organisation that truly helps people when they are at their worst.”
Our vision at MOSS is to end homelessness, but we can’t do it without your help. Funds ensure that our services continue to operate.
Will you help?
“Decrease the Digital Divide” with the M Digital Mentor Program
Merri Outreach Support Service (MOSS)
Moreland City Council
Moreland Libraries
Merri Outreach Support Service, in partnership with Moreland Libraries and Moreland City Council invites members of the local community to become Digital Mentors for senior residents.
As a Digital Mentor you will be trained and supported to work one-on-one with senior residents of the Barkly St High Rise, supporting them through their first steps to using computers and the internet. Training will include hands-on, problem-solving exercises to help you to work with learners to build their confidence and skills across a range of different digital programs and activities. Training will also focus on giving Mentors an understanding of the possible barriers their learners may experience and strategies to support them to overcome these barriers.
What is required of an “M Digital Mentor”?
o A very basic understanding of technology
o Patience and a non-judgemental approach to support their learner to develop skills and confidence in a one-on-one learning session
o A minimum of 1 hour, and up to 5 hours per week
o Participate in:
o Undertake a police check (no charge)
The first Training and Support Session will be held on the 22nd April from 1-3 pm at the Brunswick Library. If you are interested in finding out more about the program or wish to register for the April Training session, please contact Cate Thompson: cate@merri.org.au
Mentor spaces are limited.
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This is Merri Outreach Support Service.
Proudly Melbourne. Proudly working together to end homelessness.
To apply for the selected role, please fill out the form in full and attach resume to be considered for any opportunities.
It is a very sad time at MOSS.
Our beloved MOSS Ambassador Uncle Jack Charles has died aged 79.
Uncle Jack Charles was a Boon Wurrung, Dja Dja Wurrung, Woiwurrung and Yorta Yorta man and much-loved author, actor and Victorian Aboriginal elder.
Uncle Jack Charles’ contribution to the MOSS community was profound and he was always available to support us and our community’s most vulnerable.
Uncle Jack Charles had a big heart – he was kind, funny and a beautiful storyteller. We will miss his laugh. We will miss him dearly.
We pay our respects to Uncle Jack Charles who worked closely with his dear friend, the late Uncle Archie Roach, supporting Indigenous youth who needed a pro-active voice and the broader community.
We also pay our respects to Uncle Jack Charles’s family during this difficult time of loss.
**The family of Uncle Jack Charles have provided permission for his image and name to be used**