By Callum Ludwig
The Koha Community Cafe is calling on its supporters for donations to help ensure its Thursday community meals and Friday food packages can continue.
Whether or not attendees have been able to make a small donation when they receive their meal on a Thursday night or not, the Koha Community Cafe has been serving them for 14 years.
President of the Koha Community Cafe Suyin Chan said they rely heavily on receiving donations at the cafe.
“While we have a partnership with Yarra Ranges Council, it only goes so far. We continue to apply for other funding to meet our needs, but it’s a very difficult climate financially and there is a lot of competition for funding,” she said.
“Funds raised will go towards keeping us operational. We have bills to pay such as utilities, and need to buy food each week. We are run by volunteers with only the chef being paid each week to make the meals, being such a huge job to make food for potentially 100 meals on the night.”
A reduction in the amount of useable rescue food, rising cost of utility bills and repairs or replacements for broken down equipment have all contributed to the current squeeze on the cafe.
Vice President and Secretary of the Koha Community Cafe Alexandra Barton-Johnson said there are plenty of ways for people to help out.
“We hope to increase our income by hosting catering events that anyone can request, increased assistance with donations of food partnerships or donations with businesses or organisations could help us with our running costs,” she said.
“Bring your friends along to put a small donation in and if you do come for dinner and you don’t have time to volunteer officially, you can help us out by cleaning up after yourselves, wiping the tables or helping us sweep the floor so that we can get out of there earlier as all of our current volunteers are at capacity.”
The Koha Community Cafe space can be found at 25A Dammans Road, Warburton and is open for use outside of the cafe’s hours, with craft and theatre groups among those who already use it.
Ms Chan said they truly are grateful that community members support the cafe to keep going. “They are what make Koha special and allow for a welcoming inclusive place to go. Our volunteers are the lifeblood of the cafe, and we couldn’t do any of this without them,” she said.
“We feel we play an important part in the community being able to offer a weekly meal for a donation, or even if people can’t afford to donate. We have a number of regulars who rely on us being here each week. We also play a part in being a place for social connection where everyone is welcome and can feel comfortable joining in,”
“For some, it can get them out of their social isolation, for others it’s meeting people weekly and catching up over a meal, including their children. Our excess meals and produce on Friday mornings is welcomed by many who don’t like to come out at night, but can still access meals during the day.”
Nothing goes to waste even after Friday mornings, with meals delivered up the highway to Redwood Centre soup kitchen for those who need them.
Anyone interested in donating or finding out more can visit the ‘Koha Community Cafe’ Facebook page, while the cafe committee are also working on a GoFundMe page and including a ‘Donate’ button on the website. Koha Community Cafe is a registered charity, so any donations over $2 are tax deductible.
