Catholic Outlook Magazine Ordinary Time Winter Edition 2022

international company when the Taliban took over
and the husband worked with a company which had
Australian links, and which helped them to escape
over the border into Pakistan.
She says CRSA provided training and support for
group-members and continues to do so.
“We all had to do the usual security and Working
With Children Checks,” she says. “And then,
because of COVID, we did our six-hour training
course online over two days. Normally CRSA would
hold in-person workshops. They work with lots of
groups from all over Australia and the world, so we
feel very well supported by them.”
The first request for the group was to help find a
computer for the refugee family, as they had to leave
theirs behind when they fled Afghanistan, and they
require one to complete their online English courses
through TAFE, among other day-to-day reasons.
“We’ve also helped set the family up on their mobile
phones and the parish raised money over Christmas
which helped provide them with food voucher debit
cards, as they’ve arrived with no money and no job.
We’ve met for coffee, walks, picnics and provided
general information about government processes,
job-seeking, community links, playgroup and
sport and helped with school fees, uniforms and
household bills.
“In the future we’ll help them get their driver’s licence
and get their driving hours up.
“A big part of it though, is just friendship. They’ve
arrived in a new country, with few connections, so
friendship is really important.”
St Bernadette’s has a long history of supporting
refugee families, going back to the 1970s when
parishioners took in Vietnamese refugee families and
helped them settle into life in Australia.
“We put out a call in the parish newsletter and
one parishioner, who works for a major financial
services company, donated 12 laptops which were
almost brand-new, and we’ve been able to distribute
them to other refugee families across Sydney,”
Joanne says.
To learn more about how your parish could
mentor a refugee family contact Celia Vagg
at Catholic Care: (02) 8843 2550 or
celia.vagg@ccss.org.au
Debra Vermeer is a freelance writer.
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