by Sahar Foladi
The Refugee Resource Hub will hold their first Winter Food drive in Dandenong to support the community at times of staggering cost of living expense.
The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) winter food drive will be held from 10am-2pm with large numbers expected.
Community food services manager Huyen Nguyen says demands are high more than ever.
“With the increase in cost of living, people seeking asylum and refugees are amongst the most vulnerable people in our community; many with no income safety net, work rights or access to Medicare.
“We’re hoping the event will be a great success.”
Volunteers will be down at the site to help support the food drive whilst community members are encouraged to donate items such as Basmati rice, dried fruits and nuts, oil, deodorant, honey, coconut cream or milk razors and peanut butter or jam.
“We’ve seen a 45 per cent decrease in the number of in-kind donations compared to the previous financial year.
“Hence, a lot of our efforts are with increasing donations, we’re needing community support more than ever as more people access our services.”
The number of people supported by the food bank service has increased by 39 per cent from November 2023 to June 2024 supporting 400 people each month with food and essentials.
The ASRC Footscray location has driven the winter food drive program for over two decades, now extending the compassionate service to it’s Dandenong location.
