ME A L SHAR E The story behind the Melrose Park Meal Share service
T en years ago, PAYCE sowed the seed of what would become a successful jobs training model for youth, now known as Kick Start. The mission was to give young people the opportunity to find a rewarding career in hospitality with trainees who complete the practical and theoretical work graduating with a TAFE Certificate in Hospitality. Gaining new skills is just part of the equation. Under the guidance of experienced staff, trainees learn a lot about life and leave with new-found confidence, ready to chase their dreams. Kick Start was born on a PAYCE urban renewal project at Riverwood in Sydney’s south-west, where youth unemployment is well above the national average and is often, sadly, intergenerational. PAYCE built a construction canteen on the job site, serving the dual purpose of feeding hungry workers and delivering on-the-job youth training. Delivering social outcomes was just as important as bricks and mortar, where new social housing apartments stood alongside private apartments. The youth employment program proved a great success, with many of those graduates now enjoying fulfilling careers. Following the establishment of the PAYCE Foundation, the next challenge was how to roll out the Kick Start jobs training program across Sydney and give more youth a shot at training and a career. The vision became a reality with the purchase of retro- styled mobile food trailers located on construction sites across Sydney. With the assistance of great partners such as ASX-listed property investment and funds management company Charter Hall, food trailers and more places for trainees were established on construction sites. The program was growing rapidly, but then it hit a significant road bump, COVID-19. With the trailers closed and a commercial kitchen at Melrose Park about to sit idle, the PAYCE Foundation and Kick Start teams turned their attention to how they could pivot to help the vulnerable. PAYCE has been active in the community, supporting schools, sporting and community organisations and events, after starting construction on one of Sydney’s most significant urban renewal projects on a 30-hectare site in the heart of Melrose Park. With a rich history, the Melrose Park community is well known for the wonderful Australian ethos of looking out for your neighbour.
By PAYCE Foundation Director Dominic Sullivan
But like many suburbs, the shock of a pandemic lockdown exposed to further hardship the disadvantaged, isolated, unemployed, large families in need, people with a
disability and those suffering financial stress. It was clear help was needed, and quickly.
With this, the Melrose Park Meal Share service was born. The Kick Start catering kitchen could cook and deliver hundreds of meals in a COVIDSafe way to residents, including neighbouring Melrose Park suburbs. But how would we reach out to the people in need who are sometimes reluctant or just too proud to put their hand up for help? The answer was embedded in the deep Melrose Park community spirit: reach out to the community leaders and their contacts to ensure everyone who required help received it. The Melrose Park Meal Share service cranked into action, delivering seven days of restaurant-quality meals to the doorsteps of those in need. The service is an excellent example of a community coming together to help each other in a time of crisis. Clients sent some wonderful notes of thanks that emboldened staff working extremely hard over many months, but one stood out for me. “At a time of real darkness with violence, police, security costs, repairs and a job loss, you have brought us light,’’ a client wrote. She went on: “From Karen offering the service, Adriana supporting us, Matthew delivery, and the team preparing us meals, we want to say thank you so much. You have lightened my load. Brought joy to my children with exciting deliveries and helped us see people care about us. Thank you so much.’’ Twelve months ago, when we wound down the Melrose Park Meal Share, we took a deep breath along with the community. But we didn’t count on the Delta strain. It was an easy decision and a lot simpler to start up the meal service again as Sydney was plunged into what would be its most prolonged lockdown. As staff reported, there was a real fear of the deadly effects and transmissibility of the Delta variant this time. They say adversity brings out the best in Australian people, and this has come to the fore at Melrose Park. The Melrose Park Meal Share proves community-engaged philanthropy is a powerful model that can ease the burden among our most vulnerable. And with community leading the way holding a bright baton, there is always light at the end of the tunnel.
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