Debra, or ‘Deb’, began as a volunteer with Lutheran Care. Now a valued employee, Deb has grown in many ways into the face of Lutheran Care, often as the first person those in crisis, knocking on our doors for help, will see. You may also recognise Deb’s friendly face from a photo shoot to promote the organisation and its work. She is as salt of the earth and down to earth as they come, able to get along with everyone and treating everyone in her orbit, from colleagues to clients, with respect and kindness always.
The United Nations’ theme for International Women’s Day is “For ALL women and girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.” What does this mean to you?
In an ideal world all women and girls should enjoy equal rights irrespective of race, religion, ethnic background or social circumstances. This means equal opportunity to receive education, health care, and employment as desired. Empowerment means supporting and encouraging our clients to seek assistance by providing them a safe space to tell their story without judgement.
Tell us a little about what you do in your role and why you do it.
I started with Lutheran Care sorting clothes in the Op Shop Donation Distribution Centre. Then, I took over organising the Emergency Relief pantry, before moving onto interviewing clients, and again moving forward to doing Reception two days a week. Now my role within Lutheran Care has grown and now I run Emergency Relief and take care of my volunteers, and students that come through Lutheran Care on placements. I respect everyone that comes through the front doors. Just with having a smile and chat with the clients, I have their trust and respect, and I love that. When I leave work and come home, and I reflect on the day, I find myself smiling to myself and I know it’s where I need to be. So, with saying all of this, I started with no skills, but with help from my colleagues I thrive every day.
Clients that come to our service often feel embarrassed to ask for help, so I believe that it is important to make them feel valued and safe by assuring them that this is a safe space. I aim to provide a service for them that meets their needs, so that they leave knowing they didn’t need to feel helpless, and it was done with a smile and no judgement. I aim to make them feel valued and when they leave they are smiling and know that they can return if they need any further service.
It fulfills me knowing that I have helped families to put food on their table at the end of the day. It makes me smile even on the hard days. I love my job which enables me to assist others who may be in a crisis. My line manager has acted as my mentor from day one and has nurtured and encouraged me to be the best version of me, and to try new work experiences.
What’s your best piece of advice?
Believe in yourself. My work has provided me with opportunities to try new experiences which I would normally not have done. With each new experience or opportunity, my confidence and self-belief has grown thanks to the support and encouragement given to me by my work colleagues. I feel that I can embrace any new challenge that presents itself, and now I have the confidence to commence study at TAFE, something that I would never have contemplated previously.
What I would say to anyone is, if you love your job, you will never work another day. Always love and respect yourself. Smile at someone every day; you never know someone’s story, and you just never know, they might smile back…