Bells are jingling, folks! Signal
Flare's Polite Team are experiencing exciting times and are in the
throes of organizing our Christmas BBQ for the Homeless and Others in
Need. Like last year, I have been humming “Jingle Bells” for
weeks now; there's nothing quite like the anticipation of a terrific
BBQ to spread some Christmas spirit for those who may otherwise not
have much of it. Organizing this day and knowing it's going to bring
a lot of smiles is almost as much fun as the day itself :-)
I calculated that right now we are in
the middle between our last BBQ for the Homeless and Others in Need
and the Christmas one, - five and a half weeks out both sides - so I
figured I write about both. Before starting on the Christmas barbie,
I'll write about the last BBQ first. Sunday 14 September was the
first time that we headed out to Caboolture to have our BBQ there at Apex Park near the beautiful Centenary Lakes,
and I would like to send out a big thank you to the Moreton Bay
Regional Council for having us, and to Councillor Chippendale for his
support of us with a donation from his Community Support Fund. I have
to say, it was an honour to be so welcome, to meet so many beautiful
people who turned out to volunteer, and to see community in action
while visiting groups in the lead-up to the BBQ such as Caboolture
Community Action and Friends of the Street. Yes, we spent quite some
time in Caboolture leading up to BBQ day, handing out flyers and
meeting community groups. On the day the presence of our valued,
long-term supporters Knitting for Brisbane's Needy and Drug Arm was
hugely appreciated again (Dana, you rock!!!), and major thanks to Grant's parents, Robyn and
Ron, for helping out with their trailer as always, and to the Ipswich Hospital
Foundation for lending us their tables and marquees plus trailer, so
that we would be able to bring out our donations and to have shelter
from the sun. “Care packs for Brisbane's Homeless” came out to
Caboolture to hand out beautiful packs full of essentials – thank
you, guys! The gifted, enthusiastic team that manned the BBQs on the
day made sure we all had happy tummies and were well fed and smiling. Here is a photo of the happy BBQers and the Polite Team :-)
It was a big day, packing up trailers
and transporting donations, tables and marquees to Apex Park in
Caboolture, have everything set up by 10am, have a great time with
Caboolture's homeless, others in need and volunteers, and then pack
up and bring everything back to Brisbane. Many, many thanks to
Gerhard and Rebecca who were priceless, and to James for transporting
the tables and marquees back to Ipswich. The help you guys gave is
invaluable. Definitely a day that was very, very worth while!
The BBQ itself, wow! New park, new
city, but the sun was shining (Grant always says it never rains on his BBQs, haha) and the heart was the same. The compassion, the goodwill, the
smiles, the kindness, the guests who left the BBQ walking a bit
straighter than when they arrived and who felt clearly uplifted.
People were so happy to have the opportunity to be kind to others and
to help, and others were happy to receive that kindness and help. We
received excellent feedback about our very first BBQ for the Homeless
and Others in Need in Caboolture, which was so good to hear.
And, people, we have been moving fast.
The Polite Team kick ass, haha! The day following the Caboolture BBQ
we booked Musgrave Park, South Brisbane, for our annual Christmas BBQ – Sunday 30 November is the day! Thank you, Brisbane City Council, for
approving it! It promises to be very special. We will have the
support of Dalton Hospitality again, Queensland's 5-start caterers
who outdo themselves every time they so generously give their time to
share their beautiful foods with our guests and volunteers. We have
Santa coming, and there will be a few surprises. We are planning to
have some special Christmas treats, and pressies for all kids. Apart
from that, of course there will be the clothes, shoes, toiletries,
children's toys and much more that has all been donated by the community to give away to those who need it. Anyone who wants to help, please contact the Polite Team.
I know of at least one of my mates who
is coming to the BBQ! Raymond, who has been in genuine need for
several decades, is looking forward. I saw him in the city just the
other day, and talking about this upcoming Christmas BBQ I saw his
eyes light up. Our BBQs are a highlight for Raymond. He always keeps
to himself, but he thoroughly enjoys the friendly and social
atmosphere of our events. He always comes to the ones in Musgrave
Park and likes to have a little chat. Ipswich or Caboolture are too far for him to get to.
There are many people like Raymond who
find their way to our BBQs. Dealt a rough hand by life, people end up
on the street. Living on the streets is often a very isolating
experience and can crush self worth, and our BBQs provide the
opportunity to connect with others, to share a meal and a laugh, to
get some clothes, toiletries and other basics that many people take
for granted and that make their lives just a little bit easier. Our BBQs provide equality and inclusion; it doesn't matter whether
someone is homeless, a CEO of a major company or anything in between.
At our BBQs people eat together and chat together, the CEO may help
the homeless person find the clothes he or she needs, or may even
employ someone, offering them the opportunity to tun their lives
around. A start is often all they need, the rest is up to them. A
friendly, encouraging word that is spoken often does wonders to the
person on the receiving end. It may not happen right away, but change
has often been instigated by someone believing in them. One of the
most beautiful things is when someone who came to get help at one BBQ
turns his or her life around and comes to the next BBQ to volunteer, give back and help others.
And so we are looking forward to our
Christmas BBQ. To sharing some Christmas spirit. To sharing some food
and drinks. I know it's early, but here's to Christmas and to all who
make Christmas what it is – all of you!
Written by Bernie the Polite Girl for the Polite Team
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