Every Emergency Relief client we help has a story. Lutheran Care’s Deb is often the first friendly face they see.
She wanted to share some of our clients’ journeys, so supporters like you can see the impact your donation makes.
Since Deb started her role in our Emergency Relief service five years ago, demand has quadrupled.
Winter Appeal
Don’t let their stories go unheard this winter.
Every day, new clients walk through the door with a story to tell. It’s the elderly gentleman who came in last winter, though, who has stayed with Deb. He’d been experiencing homelessness and brought with him everything he owned.
“It had been pouring. He was drenched,” Deb remembers. “All his stuff, sopping wet.”
The first thing she did was give him a voucher for the Lutheran Care Op Shop.
"Go next door, and get some dry clothes," she told him. “Go and get changed and then we can talk.
“I made him a coffee and tried to warm him up,” Deb shares.
Once the man was more comfortable, Deb sat down with him and listened to his story, so she could connect him with what he needed. Food, a blanket, a warm sleeping bag. Advice. Support to access our homelessness services.
Deb’s is the friendly face that greets you at the desk when you come through the door for help. For many, it’s not an easy step. There’s often shame and embarrassment.
Everyone has a story, and Deb is a good listener. She understands what it’s like more than many, as she has also seen hard times in her life.
She remembers a woman coming in, distraught. She was losing her home and preparing to move into a caravan. Deb sat with her, trying to calm her down.
“I smiled at her and said, ‘It’s going to be okay,’” Deb recalls. The woman looked at her. “How would you know?”
“Because I’m living in a caravan right now,” Deb said.
The woman paused. “Really?”
“I lost my house,” Deb told her. “I’ve been in a caravan for eight months. It’s hard — but you’ll get there. Things will get better.”
A few months later, the woman came back.
“You were right. Things are okay,” the woman said. “I landed on my feet. I got another house. Everything worked out.”
“She thanked me,” Deb adds. “That made me feel good.”
Deb understands that for many clients facing hard times, when it rains, it pours.
She remembers the woman whose home on the southern Fleurieu had been so smoke damaged by the Kangaroo Island bushfires that she couldn’t live there. She couldn’t afford to pay for repairs and was trying to claim compensation. She had nowhere else to live. Meanwhile, her husband was gravely ill and had been hospitalised. The woman was sleeping in her car.
“Everything was starting to snowball for her,” Deb says.
“She just didn't know where to go, what to do.”
Deb connected her with one of Lutheran Care’s counsellors to offer much needed professional support. She also booked her in with one of our financial counsellors.
“She’s doing a lot better now. She’s back at work and her husband’s
out of hospital,” Deb shares.
“She still calls and comes in and she's so grateful. I was glad I was on the desk that day, so I could take care of her.”
*Clients’ names have been changed to protect their confidentiality.
This winter, can you give to our Winter Appeal to help us support more people? Don’t let their stories go unheard this winter.
Emergency Relief isn’t just about food, clothing or vouchers — although they’re important. It’s practical support that helps people build the skills and find the solutions they need to cope with the hand they’ve been dealt. Someone who ‘gets’ them and what they’re going through, who can assist with a plan.
Without your help, these stories would not have had hopeful endings. Without donors like you, we simply couldn’t support the people who walk through our doors.
But the need is deepening. We all know about the cost-of-living crisis — and many of us are feeling the pinch. But none more so than the most vulnerable in our communities.
And increasingly, the people seeking help are those who never thought they would need it — people in relationships, in work, with mortgages. They’re doing everything they can, and still, they can’t keep up.
Since Deb started in her role five years ago, demand has quadrupled.
As soon as the Emergency Relief pantry is stocked, the food is gone. Appointments fill almost immediately. Deb has to turn more than 15 people away every day — asking them to come back and try again.
She does what she can, making sure no one leaves completely emptyhanded. But it’s heartbreaking.
Lutheran Care
How You Can Help
There are many families out there that need some help this Winter. Your donation to Lutheran Care will help us provide Emergency Relief and ongoing support to people in crisis.
- $25 - will fund an Emergency Relief ‘overnight bag’ for dinner & breakfast for two adults
- $60 - will fund an Emergency Relief food hamper packed full of fresh foods, long-life pantry staples and snacks, so a family in need isn’t going hungry.
- $150 - can help us deliver parenting education workshops and support groups, one-on-one financial and personal counselling, crèche services and playgroups at Family Zone.
- $250 - can help us provide additional support to people experiencing complex issues such as homelessness, domestic or family violence, mental health concerns and more.
- $1000 - will support a family fleeing violence or abuse, or stepping out of homelessness with Emergency Accomodation, clothing, toys, furniture and whitegoods essentials.
We sincerely thank you for whatever you can give this Winter. We are truly heartened by your willingness to make a difference for someone you may never meet.
