PRONIA recently wrapped up their hamper project, which assisted 473 people, many over the age of 65 along with families with children.

From last November, vulnerable clients in numerous municipalities including Greater Geelong and City of Latrobe were delivered a hamper consisting of mainly Greek products, staple and non-perishable foods valued at $50.

The project aimed to reduce the impact of COVID-19 related issues supporting individuals and families within the Greek and broader community who experience wellbeing, isolation and financial hardship, amongst other vulnerabilities.

$15,000 of funding from the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing allowed PRONIA to provide immediate and crucial support to families in need and to enable engagement and stronger connections within the community.

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PRONIA social worker and project lead Niki Fotias made sure the initiative was tailored to the needs of the Greek community’s vulnerable members.

“Greek foods and essentials were carefully chosen for each hamper. Also, our team consisted of Greek-speaking workers to ensure we engaged with the elderly Greek-speaking members easily,” she said.

The team also provided more than just food for their recipients.

“Overall, we are very pleased that we were able to contribute positively to the lives of 300 families and provide support, not only in the form of the hampers but also by providing referrals and information for other support services according to their needs,” Ms Fotias said.

PRONIA’s CEO Tina Douvos-Stathopoulos noted the uptick in people requiring a helping hand from when the pandemic really took ahold of Australia from around March last year.

“In 2020 we saw an increased demand for emergency relief, starting with the deliveries of our hampers last Easter and completing with the delivery of the 300 hampers recently. It comes to us as no surprise, as people have lost their jobs, are on a temporary visa or relied on casual employment,” she said.

Apart from the emotional and practical support, making contact with members of the community has provided increased opportunities to respond to the immediate needs of people.

PRONIA thanked BASFOODS International for their collaboration and support of this initiative.