Hands-on charity West Welcome Wagon is rolling out Brimbank’s welcome mat for more than 300 asylum seeker families.
The not-for-profit, which began in 2013, has a new home base in a Sunshine West warehouse.
The group says the new digs will allow it to bolster its work welcoming asylum seekers into communities.
The team will crank up operations later this month, with volunteers sorting, storing, packing and distributing all kinds of donations – food, furniture and linen – to families in need.
Before now, West Welcome Wagon operated out of the homes of volunteer co-ordinators from across the west, with heavy objects, such as furniture and white goods, kept at a Brooklyn storage facility.
West Welcome Wagon president and “born and bred westie” Marnie Kelly said the 420 square-metre warehouse was perfect for the group’s work.
“I’d say 70 per cent of our houses [that WWW helps] are in Brimbank. We’ve helped about 700 households so far in total.
“We’d probably have well over 300 families in Brimbank [that we help]; we get about eight or nine new referrals every few weeks.”
The West Welcome Wagon needs to find $33,000 to cover most of the first year’s rent of the warehouse. Donations of more than $2 are tax deductible.
Details: www.givenow.com.au/westwelcomewagonhome
