With the cold and wet weather creeping in as winter approaches, the opening of the Yarra Valley Winter Shelter doors couldn’t come at a more appropriate time this weekend.
Starting in 2017, Stable One has run the Winter Shelter each year since and will be running the program again from Sunday 1 June.
Stable One chief executive Katherine Kirkwood said the Yarra Valley Winter Shelter began as a local, practical response to the increasing issue of homelessness, with multiple churches across different denominations collaborating by opening their venues to provide a meal, shelter and community connection to those without a place to stay.
“It runs just for the winter months, involving ideally 150 plus volunteers who cook, spend time with guests, stay awake overnight, drive the minibus and move the trailer with bedding and other supplies between venues during the week,” she said.
“The shelter hosts up to 10 guests per night – both male and female, some who have been sleeping rough, in their cars or in tents throughout the Yarra Valley, the shelter gives them a chance to keep warm and well fed, engage in positive social interactions, and ‘feel like a human again’, as quoted by a previous guest,”
“Although it is a short-term program, the finite nature of the shelter can motivate guests to intentionally engage with the support provided and take positive steps forward, when someone’s primary needs are taken care of, they are better able to think about ‘what’s next’ or how they can improve their situation.”
Shelter volunteers are on site throughout the winter months to support those who access the shelter while thanks to a grant earlier this year, a dedicated Welfare Coordinator has also been employed to help connect people with local services and provide personal assistance and support.
Ms Kirkwood said they partner closely with Anchor Community Care in Lilydale, who undertake all guest assessments and approvals on their behalf and from discussions with them, understand that there has been a dramatic increase of individuals, couples and families seeking assistance.
“The heartbreaking situation is that there are simply not enough resources to provide assistance for those in need – with limited affordable housing and no other crisis accommodation available in our local area, options are extremely limited, our winter shelter provides Anchor with a chance to say ‘yes, we have something for you’,” she said.
“As our program can cater for only up to 10 guests per night, however, we know that we can’t solve the homelessness crisis by ourselves, but does that mean that we shouldn’t bother doing anything,”
“Of course no, we are doing what we can, with the resources that we have – and if it makes a positive difference for even just one person, it’s absolutely worth it, that’s why we have a One in our name, we expect to care for approximately 30-35 ‘ones’ across the full three months.”
The Yarra Valley Winter Shelter was the first in Stable One’s Winter Shelter Network, with research by founder Jenny Willetts OAM and the experience of the shelter allowing them to provide consulting advice to other shelters starting out. The Winter Shelter Network now includes shelters in Wangaratta, Frankston, Bendigo, Bass Coast and Benalla in Victoria as well as Toowoomba and Gympie in Queensland, spanning from established shelters to those looking to launch pilot programs this winter.
Ms Kirkwood said their ideal volunteer number is 150, with 1300 shifts to fill throughout the season, and they currently sit at about the 130 mark and would love some more volunteers to help fill the roster with more ease.
“Sharon Jacob has been engaged as our Operations Coordinator this year, and she is doing a wonderful job coordinating the volunteers and making sure shifts are filled in preparation for opening on 1 June, volunteers come both from local churches and across the community,” she said.
“They recognise that by themselves they can’t do much to help with such a huge housing and homelessness crisis, but when working as part of a team in a program such as this, they can achieve great things, we often find that not only does our program provide a sense of community and belonging for our guests, it does this for our volunteers too,”
“The extra special volunteers are our overnighters – those that are willing to stay awake from 11pm to 6am to ensure our shelter remains a safe place for everyone – engaging enough overnight volunteers is always our biggest challenge.”
Whether interested in volunteering or finding alternative ways you can support, more details can be found at stableone.org.
Ms Kirkwood said for people looking to support the winter shelter, there are many ways to get involved.
“Volunteering is the first option of course – and there are a few different roles to suit different abilities, volunteers can do as many or as few shifts as they like – there is no minimum,” she said.
“In order to keep the shelter running smoothly, Stable One is supported by generous individuals and organisations who see the value in our work – both locally, and also as we help others to do what we do though the Winter Shelter Network and if you can’t do either of those things, don’t think that you can’t still make a difference,”
“I would encourage people to consider how they can offer those doing it tough ‘unconditional positive regard’ – by withholding judgement, being interested in them as a person, engaging in conversation or being a listening ear, recognise that until you have walked in their shoes, you can’t understand fully the choices that you see them making, simply offering a smile can change someone’s day for the better.”
Those looking to provide financial support can sponsor one or more bed nights for $42 per night for the local program, or make a financial donation towards the work of Stable One more generally.
