Notes from the Field #18: Week Ending Sunday 7th June 26’

Street Feeds: Getting One Under Our Belts

On Friday night, Pete led, with my support, a trial Street Feed for people camping on the Domain. We set up at the Legacy Park BBQs and brought meat, bread, and drinks to share.

In practical terms, not much happened. Attendance was low and there was no dramatic breakthrough. But sometimes community work is simply about turning up and learning what works. We came away feeling that the most important thing was getting the first Street Feed under our belts.

The experience helped us think about the next steps. Pete will now begin distributing flyers to people in the area so that future Street Feeds are better known and more accessible.

FNB Hobart Online Gets a Facelift

The FNB Hobart website has received a significant refresh. The updated site now includes improved information, donation facilities, and clearer pathways for supporters wanting to get involved.

One unique addition is the new Mascots page, featuring hand-carved wooden animals available for purchase. These mascots help tell the story of our work while creating another way for people to support community activities.

The website continues to evolve as both a community information hub and a fundraising platform.

Collaboration with Pets in the Park

This week we again collaborated with Pets in the Park, a program that provides veterinary support for people experiencing homelessness and hardship.

The arrangement works well. While clients bring their pets for treatment and care, they can also access food and connect with the wider community around the Food Not Bombs shared table.

An interesting pattern often emerges in these collaborations. Many professionals entering homelessness services for the first time arrive with understandable uncertainty. They may not know what to expect from the environment, the people, or the challenges involved. Food Not Bombs volunteers rarely look particularly professional ourselves, and sometimes people initially mistake us for service users rather than organisers.

Occasionally this can create awkward moments. Yet these moments are also opportunities for learning. Community work often brings together people from very different backgrounds, and over time those differences become bridges rather than barriers.

An Old Friend Returns

One of the highlights of the week was seeing Loretta again.

I had not seen her for around a year. Before I got married and moved away from the housing block where I was living, Loretta was a regular visitor. During that period of my life, I chose to live within a community experiencing significant disadvantage because I wanted to understand poverty not from a distance, but from within daily life.

Loretta once told me that I treated her like a person rather than a problem to be managed. That conversation has stayed with me.

She spent a long time at the event, sharing stories and reconnecting. It was a reminder of how relationships built over years can endure despite long periods apart.

A couple of days later I heard she had been temporarily excluded from the shelter after experiencing difficulties related to substance use. It was a reminder that recovery and stability are rarely straight lines. People continue to face setbacks, challenges, and difficult days. Yet the value of treating people with dignity remains unchanged regardless of where they find themselves on that journey.

Continuing the Journey

This week was not defined by large numbers or major achievements. Instead, it was about foundations: trialling a new Street Feed, strengthening partnerships, improving our online presence, and reconnecting with people whose stories have intersected with ours over many years.

Sometimes progress looks less like a breakthrough and more like simply showing up again next week.

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

Discover more from Christiaan McCann | Risks and Solutions for the Vulnerable | Small Projects in Hobart