Our Message House
Driving community connections has sent us in many directions as we forge partnerships and collaborate for greater collective impact. Below is a snapshot of some of the initiatives we are undertaking to help create more inclusive communities and help raise much needed funds along the way!
COMMUNITY CIRCLES
THE LIVING ROOM
BUTTERFLY BUDDIES
RAOK Day – 20 November
NYC MARATHON
COMMUNITY CIRCLES
Traditionally in Australia, people seeking care will typically be referred to a service provider. A package will be prepared, that may cover only a small percentage of that person’s needs, and the person will be required to fit in with the schedule of the service provider based on a pre-determined funding allocation. Schemes which follow this model, such as MyAged Care and NDIS, are now the subject of damning Royal Commission findings and changes need to be made to overcome these fundamental flaws.
Introducing Community Circles! The principle of Community Circles is very simple. It breathes life into the concept of ‘person-led’ care. Community Circles enables people to be, and to feel more, valued in their community by enabling dignity and choice and a sense of belonging, participation and inclusion. Blended well together, Community Circles helps create meaningful connections.
Community Circles can work across a range of ages, abilities and backgrounds. Anyone can have a circle! In its purest form, it brings two or more people together around someone who wants a little help to make a change in their life. That change can be anything – from getting out and about more, getting some help around the house, shopping for basic daily needs, or creating opportunities to spend more time with friends or family. As a person’s individual circumstances become more complex, such as where disability or ageing are factors, Community Circles works by adding more layers to a person’s circle. In short, Community Circles is a solution to the future of social care in Australia.
Due to the purposeful partnerships and community collaboration that Community Circles operates through, the positive impact of Community Circles is far-reaching. Circles not only allows people to self-direct their lives whilst improving their physical, emotional and social challenges, but it also empowers people within the community to join and participate, either as a paid facilitator of a circle or as a volunteer providing support. Informal care from family, friends and community is a crucial part of the social care system. They nurture, they support, they care, they advocate, and they speak up when something’s not right. The value of informal carers is difficult to overstate. The economic value they contribute, and the important care and support they provide is essential to a person’s well-being, not to mention that the volunteers also enjoy improved well-being simply by giving to others. Supported by a trained facilitator, the Circles are constantly evaluated to ensure the care is right. Overall, Community Circles lead to healthy, thriving and connected communities. Stay tuned as this initiative really starts to spread its wings!!
THE LIVING ROOM
Touched by Olivia is partnering with the City of Canada Bay Council to help drive community connections. The Council’s mission to create a more liveable, connected and ultimately inclusive community aligns perfectly with Touched by Olivia’s initiative that will deliver a ‘Living Room’ adjacent to Livvi’s Place, at Timbrell Park. The ‘Living Room’ will comprise an indoor/outdoor community space where everybody is welcome. The project will see us replace the existing Livvi’s Cafe with a more multi-functional centre, in which everyone can socialise in a safe and relaxed environment. Additionally, The Living Room will enable Livvi’s Café to expand its social enterprise through a greater scope of disability training coupled with programs and workshops aimed at addressing and supporting the needs of the community.
To see the latest developments including the draft design, click here.
BUTTERFLY BUDDIES
When the world is told to isolate, inclusion is where our heart is. For many out there, this new world is scary, overwhelming and full of risk. Some are not able to venture outside, some are not willing to venture outside, some have nowhere to turn. This is where Touched by Olivia steps in. We are launching our new campaign to activate communities – to bring inclusion to others through our “Butterfly Buddies”. Butterfly Buddies are people within your community who can help you through this crisis. They will check in on you, go to the shops for you, walk your dog for you, mow your lawn for you, bake some goodies for you. They will be your buddies to turn to and they will make sure you’re ok.
We are starting small but our dream is to go BIG! In time we will have an app to support this campaign but in the meantime, what we need are Butterfly Buddies in every community. If you have some spare time and can sign up as a Butterfly Buddy, then fill in this form –
https://forms.gle/C9ZJuQrRP5y3MHQw5
We can then buddy you up with people in your community. We will also equip you with a toolkit of resources at our cost so you can reach more people within your community. See our first item below – a flyer you can print and pop in your neighbourhood’s letter boxes to reach out to those people truly in need.
If however you need a Butterfly Buddy, then please fill in this form
https://forms.gle/APBCsLuvjKDGKSbu5
And remember, Friday is “Furry Friends Friday” where buddies can offer to take a neighbours dog for a walk or to the park, and may even be able to run an errand at the same time.
Come on communities – let’s isolate with inclusion and let’s work together.
RAOK Day – 20 November
Launched in 2017, every 20 November is TBO’s RAOK day.
On this day each year we encourage people to make a random act of kindness and share this special event with us by tagging #RAOK.
What is a random act of kindness? A random act of kindness is a non premeditated, inconsistent action designed to offer kindness towards the outside world. The phrase “practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty” was written by Anne Herbert on a placemat in Sausalito, California in 1982.
Join TBO on 20 November (or any day!) and commit a random act of kindness.
Want some inspiration? Let’s ask our guru, Oprah! Click here
We also created a kindness calendar for the month of December, to share the holiday spirit!
New York City Marathon 2016 – running for those who can’t
The NYC marathon takes participants through the five boroughs with a slight detour through the little known districts of Heartache, Determination, Inspiration and Elation. At the beginning of 2016, Touched by Olivia decided we would like to take part in the world’s greatest race. It would commemorate our tenth anniversary, and be a great way to reconnect with our local community. The call went out and we were delighted when 30 runners signed up.
On November 6th, New York closes car access to her streets and invites 50,000 runners to take part in one of the most iconic marathons in the world. The fun started at 6am when we boarded coaches to Staten Island. Our crew set up camp and stood out, with runners from all over the world requesting pictures with us. A highlight was being interviewed on ABC News (watch here!). Every single runner finished, even those with injuries. The medals are the same, but the memories are personal and individual. It was an elating and emotional experience after months of training and sacrifice. Knowing that we were running for those who can’t kept us going and inspired on this adventure.
Our love and thanks go to the Run for Play Team who rose to the triple challenge:
train for a marathon, self fund your entry and help us to raise $200,000 so everyone can play.
Amy Carr, Mel Cooper, Stumpy Curren, Cathy Dodds, Melinda Doust, Lachlan Downe, Peter Dredge, Susan Gibson, Jason Hameister, Sue Hardaker, Kylie, Harry, Bec Ho, Tom Hollings, David Johnsun, Marnie Jurkowski, Gladys Mallqui, Emma Mauceri, Sean McCann, Fiona Morrison, Parry Nero, Nadia Nero, Vic Nero, Sophie O’Brien, CK Pass, Justine Perkins, Chris Russo, David Simon, Jeff Soo, Andy Thomas, Cath Watson and Sarah Wood.
Watch them in action here!!
