The community of carers weaved throughout SSI’s programs ensures there’s always a helping hand when someone reaches out for support.

Do you see foster care and adoption as two sides of the same coin? If you’d like to find out whether fostering is right for you, it’s important to understand these two choices are very different.  

Saying goodbye to the children Afet has fostered is never easy. Over the years she’s learnt to appreciate the positive parts of that final farewell.  

Lisa* didn’t expect her foster care experience to turn out quite like this: zipping around supermarket aisles, sourcing ingredients to make her first Samoan curry.

Most people begin their foster care journey with little more than a spare room and a desire to provide a home for a child in need. That’s all Lisa* had when she saw an online ad calling for more foster homes.

Ukrainian refugee Yurii Chuchenko and his heavily pregnant wife Inna arrived in Australia from Thailand after Russia invaded their homeland earlier this year.

Ukrainian refugees Yurii and Inna Chuchenko settled in Fern Bay in April this year.

When their visas in Thailand expired, the couple were working in Thailand and expecting their first child and their families back home begged them not to return to Ukraine with Inna due to soon give birth.

“Our families wanted to protect us from terror and desperation back home,” Mr Chuchenko said.

After Port Stephens couple Mark and Jenni Chapple shared a post with their Instagram followers and learned about Yurii and Inna’s situation, they immediately contacted them, offering support.

Mr Chapple arranged flights and temporary visas for the Chuchenkos to fly to Australia away from the devastation in Ukraine.

The Chapples are keen to assist Ukrainian refugees in securing jobs and starting new lives in northwestern NSW, where the cost of living is cheaper and industries have dire needs for workers.

Like other Ukrainian refugees, the Chuchenkos received support from Settlement Services International through the Australian Government’s Humanitarian Settlement Program funded by the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs* to access essential services and integrate into Australian life.

When the Chuchenkos settled in Fern Bay in April, they were still on their 600 visas which gave them limited access to local services, and they were connected to SSI to help them access 449 visas.

SSI Humanitarian Settlement Program Regional Coordinator for Newcastle and the Hunter Helen Larkin said that the Chuchenkos now have a better footing to start their new lives.

“The Chuchenkos are extremely self-sufficient, but with SSI’s support to access mainstream services and AMEP classes, they’re able to steamroll ahead in starting new lives here in Australia.” Mr Chuchenko said he is grateful for the whole-of-community support they’ve received from the Chapples, SSI and other community groups and members.

“Mark and Jenni, they saved us. They are now like our mother and father.

“Organisations like SSI are so important when you arrive in Australia as a refugee, and you have no prior knowledge of anything in the country.”

The Chapples’ proposal for a pathway to assist Ukrainians to settle in regional NSW – the CH2 project – is something that the Chuchenkos highly endorse and are supporting.

Mr Chuchenko said he was eager to raise awareness about the benefits of refugee resettlement in regional Australia with the Ukrainian community.

“As newly arrived refugees in Fern Bay, we’ve had such a positive experience so far and want to share our insights with other Ukrainians across Australia.

“This is why we started the CH2 Project to provide a fluid, secure and efficient pathway for Ukrainian Nationals to a life in Regional NSW.

“Our first project is to build this pathway to the regional cities and townships within the Upper Hunter, Liverpool Plains and New England areas.”

 

*For information about Australia’s settlement program, visit https://homeaffairs.gov.au/

Getting a job has been on Faith Zadro’s mind a long time.

That was SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis’ message to those attending the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia (FECCA) conference at the Sofitel Melbourne, June 16-17.

Speaking during the conference dinner, Ms Roumeliotis said that only by working together could Australia be a place of belonging, a place where all people, regardless of where they came from, felt they were welcomed and encouraged to reach their full potential.

FECCA is the peak, national body representing people in Australia from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Its role is to advocate and promote issues on behalf of its constituency to government, business and the broader community.

The FECCA conference is Australia’s premier conference on multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, and migration.

This year’s conference was themed “Advancing Multicultural Australia” and brought together multicultural communities, policy makers, service providers, and academics over two days of interesting presentations, speakers and topics.

In addition to being the conference dinner sponsor, SSI was represented by staff making presentations and Ms Roumeliotis delivering the conference dinner speech.

Juliana Nkrumah AM, SSI’s Project Manager Domestic & Family Violence and Founder/President of African Women Australia, delivered a keynote address with Professor Megan Davis, providing a multicultural perspective on The Uluru Statement from the Heart.

She also presented a poster showcasing an innovative SSI project, Supporting U, that trains CALD leaders to respond to domestic and family violence in their communities.

Astrid Perry OAM, SSI’s Head of Women, Equity and Domestic and Family Violence, presented a paper called “Beyond the RAP Document: Embracing the Uluru Statement from the Heart in Multicultural Australia”.

Tadgh McMahon, Head of Research and Policy, presented a paper on digital inclusion from the 2021 Foundations for Belonging report. The paper focused on the gaps in access to digital devices used for remote education (i.e. laptops and desktops) among refugee households and the gaps in digital skills among older refugees, especially women.

At the conference dinner, Ms Roumeliotis spoke about the power of humanity.

“We must remind everyone that the most precious resource in Australia is not what we mine out of the earth – it is the people that walk on it who will deliver the prosperous future for our country,” she said.

She said the need for an open-mindedness to embrace diversity and unleash human potential was not a sentiment shared by all.

“So our challenge as guardians of human rights is to sell this story to others, to influence conversations at every opportunity, and remind our fellow Australians that multiculturalism is part of our DNA.”

She said the political and media support for Afghans and Ukrainians gave hope for the safe, equal and successful settlement of the newly arrived – but that should be the standard response every time people were in need of safety and support.

“For there is much to do. And a long way to go. But we can do this, working together and focusing on what really matters.”

MSP is a free MiniRoos program for boys and girls aged 5 to 11 who have arrived in Australia within the past five years. It aims to foster relationships between clubs, schools and local communities to engage and provide playing opportunities for newly-arrived children.

The day of tournaments and celebrations included events for children, women and girls, parents versus kids, walking football, cultural performances, face painting, rides, dance battles and prizes.

It provided an opportunity for newly arrived migrants and refugees to socialise, build stronger connections with other individuals and communities, and make new friends.

It also provided a space where parents could be involved in their children’s and young people’s interests and talents, and explore different things.

Of those who attended, 150 participated in the facilitated games and an overwhelming 110 of those participants were female.

The walking football activity was the talk of the day as it gave those who preferred a less-active approach a chance to participate in the day’s festivities and excitement.

Tresor Rusangiza, Senior Sports and Recreation Officer at MSC, was thrilled with the turnout and people’s involvement.

“The Family Event provided MSC a great opportunity to build a stronger relationship with Football Queensland and it will definitely be a benefit as we work towards future events and opportunities for people in our community,” he said.

On World Refugee Day, June 20, Fatima Payman became Australia’s first Afghan-born Australian elected to the federal parliament.

Ms Payman’s refugee father brought her to Australia with the rest of her family when she was 8. She is also the first hijab-wearing member of parliament and the third youngest to be elected to the Senate.

This is important for many reasons.

We all benefit when our nation is governed by diverse representatives with lived experience they can bring to the floor of parliament. But, as Ms Payman herself said in her first public interview as a senator, young girls and other women “can’t be what they can’t see”, and so I hope that her win serves as inspiration to others, whether from refugee or other backgrounds.

The second heartwarming thing was the release of new research from Amnesty International, and Ipsos, showing Australians’ strong support of refugees.

Highlights from Amnesty’s research, released on June 19, found that 72 per cent of Australians support either maintaining or increasing Australia’s humanitarian intake and that most Australians support refugees being settled in Australia. Fifty-seven per cent back community sponsorship if communities can support the refugees.

Amnesty’s annual Human Rights Barometer also found that most Australians think our government spends too much money keeping asylum seekers locked in detention.

The Ipsos research paints an international picture and includes Australian respondents. It found that three-in-four adults across 28 countries surveyed agreed that people should be able to take refuge in other countries to escape war or persecution.

It also found attitudes towards refugees have become more positive on average, since last year.

SSI will continue to work with the Federal Government to advocate for refugees and asylum seekers. We hope to soon see an increase in Australia’s humanitarian intake, community sponsored refugee program intake, and other key settlement changes Labor took to the election as promises.

I want to leave you with some more positive information.

When I’m asked to speak about those who come to our country as refugees, asylum seekers or migrants, I like to remind people of this research from Oxford University Professor Ian Goldin, who found that migrants are:

• 2 to 3 times more likely to start a business
• 2 to 3 times more likely to win Nobel Prizes
• 2 to 4 times more likely to lodge patents!

Of course, that doesn’t include the rich cultural and social contributions they bring, along with admirable traits like resilience and adaptability.

At SSI we are privileged to be able to offer a warm welcome to our new arrivals and help them adjust to living in a new culture and society where much of what they find is different, can be complex, and at times overwhelming. Every day I get to meet the most amazing people!

I hope you have been able to participate in some of our celebration events, had a chance to meet some of our refugees, or simply took a moment to appreciate that we truly are the lucky country in a world where millions of others face wars, famine and displacement.

We welcome your support outside of Refugee Week of course. We welcome donations and have many volunteering opportunities. Perhaps you might listen to some stories to understand more about the refugee experience, extend a warm smile, or the hand of friendship.

Building awareness of the refugee and migration experience helps promote understanding and greater community harmony.

In today’s world, this is a rare and precious thing.

Let’s all play our part, every day of the week, to welcome and celebrate refugees and contribute to a better and more cohesive multicultural Australia.

Violet Roumeliotis