WESLEY Mission hosted a long lunch last week for its teams from Coffs, Ballina, Grafton and Taree as a ‘thank you’ for their ongoing commitment and service to the area.

Monday 3 April saw around 90 people gather at Jetty Beach House in Coffs Harbour where they were officially welcomed by Alex Webb from Bularri Muurlay Nyanggan Aboriginal Corporation (BMNAC), who gave the Welcome to Country.

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Rev. Stu Cameron, CEO and Superintendent of Wesley Mission, said he is particularly proud of the Coffs Harbour team’s success with the Youth Refuge program.

“Focusing on long-term housing solutions, it is something that has grown significantly in regional Australia,” said Stu.

“Wesley Mission is in it for the long haul and in Coffs we are exploring an opportunity around community housing.”
Some 40 percent of Wesley Mission’s work is outside of Sydney.

“Wesley Mission is Sydney based but not Sydney centric,” he said.

Happy to be celebrating the good works of her colleagues around the Mid North Coast, locally based Meena Johnson, Program Manager of Wesley Youth Accommodation Services, Coffs Harbour told NOTA, “It’s been a challenging year but it’s good to be here now.

“Our team has been really task-focused which has got us a lot of good outcomes for young people, despite the housing crisis,” she said.

The long lunch was seen as a start to Wesley Mission’s Easter celebrations.

“Wesley Mission is part of the broader Uniting Church,” said Stu.

“Lifeline Coffs Harbour is also an offshoot of Wesley Mission,” he said.

Wesley Mission provides a broad base of community services and supports.

In Coffs Harbour these include Wesley Dalmar Out of Home Care, Wesley LifeForce Aftercare, Wesley LifeForce Training and Wesley Vocational Institute.

By Andrea FERRARI