Community Conversations with Pietro

What happens when parents are drug affected and unable to raise their children? Mirabel is a support service for children who are being raising by family members who should be in a retirement lifestyle... yes grandparents. Truth, Mirabel is supporting grandparents in a way that, without their support, childhood neglect and poverty would be far worse. An organisation with no government funding in NSW they are unsung heroes who also need your support.

In this episode of Community Conversations Pietro speaks with Robert Sams, the Executive Director and Volunteer Crisis Supporter for Lifeline Newcastle and Central Coast. Nearly everyone would have heard of Lifeline before, but there are some things that you definitely might not have known about the services they offer, how they are engaging with the community and the process for becoming a telephone crisis support volunteer. It will come as no surprise, on the back of drought, bushfires, floods and COVID-19 that calls to Lifeline are unprecedented and like most organisations/businesses, their revenue is down. That said, in the true spirit of Lifeline, they have just put on another 30 volunteers and as you will hear throughout the podcast, that is not a cheap exercise given the cost of training involved.
We would encourage you to share this podcast to help raise awareness about the services offered and to consider how you or others might be able to get involved.
Lifeline can be contacted on 13 11 14 or SMS 0477 13 11 14

Until recently Tanya Davies MP had a Facebook following of about 4000 people and in a very short space of time it has grown exponentially to 84,000. Is it divine favour or that she was willing to go against her own boss, the former Premier Gladys Berejiklian and her own party, the Liberal Party, to stand up for her constituents? Whichever it may be, her voice has been amplifying the thoughts and feelings of at least 80,000 people from her electorate of Mulgoa.
When it comes to faith, there may not be a more diverse electorate than Mulgoa and it has been Tanya's faith driving her to serve people and be the difference. We hope you enjoy this episode that provides an insight to Tanya's heart and love for people.

In this episode we’re coming to you from Connect Global, a drug and alcohol rehabilitations centre. Unlike other centres, this one is about rebuilding the man and not just treating existing addictions. We would like to thank Ross Pene, Program Manager, and some of the men who are a part of the program for sharing from their heart in this episode. We encourage you to share this podcast across your network to spread the word about how men are released from the pain of addiction and incarceration to become role models for their families, friends and the community.

In this current climate there is a new demographic of people experiencing homelessness. Not people who have drug, alcohol or gambling addictions and not the long term unemployed but people with jobs and a good rental history. Such is the shortage of housing that even first home buyers are finding it difficult, if not impossible to afford a home. In this podcast edition we speak to Sonia Hornery MP for Wallsend and Rick Prosser the CEO of The Soul Cafe. Our guests share what they see as the main reasons for the homeless crisis and offer some ideas on how to fix the problem. This will be compelling listening. #community #communityconversations #homelessness