Emergency Relief Centre – Service Closed

The UnitingCare North Adelaide Emergency Relief Centre was established in September 2020, as a response to the need for more sites to distribute some form of food relief during the COVID 19 pandemic. It was an outreach of the Brougham Place Uniting Church and was run entirely by volunteers for four years. It closed on 14 August 2024 for the foreseeable future.  Many volunteers were members of the church and others were from the wider community, including university students.

This decision was not made lightly and was made after significant discussion and prayer. We had not been able to find a new Coordinator for the service, and it was decided it was not sustainable to keep it going at this time. In addition we had been notified that urgent works to our building would be starting which meant limited or no access to the area where the service was run. All these things contributed to the decision to close UnitingCare North Adelaide Emergency Relief Centre.

We thank all those who have supported the service in time, money, goods, goodwill and prayer. Our prayers for the visitors of the service continue and we will continue to seek ways to support those struggling in different ways in the community.

Where can you go if you need food?

UnitingCare Enfield

08 7120 7837

office@enfielduca.org.au.

Open Tues 10am-12pm

Park Street, Sefton Park SA 5083

Public Transport: Bus stop 17 on Main North Road
Bus stop 17a on Regency Road (Circle Line bus)

UnitingCare Woodville Gardens

0412 107 105

jerema.g@hotmail.com.

Open Tues 12pm-1.30pm

The Grove Uniting Church 80 Ridley Grove, Woodville Gardens 5012

OzHarvest Market Adelaide – Free Food Market

Located at 25 Manton St, Hindmarsh.

Tues 10am – 2pm, Wed 3pm – 7pm, Thur 10am – 2pm

A number of other services can be found on webpages such as Affordable SA & Adelaide Homeless Journal.

https://www.affordablesa.com.au

https://homelessadelaideaustralia.weebly.com

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Looking Back…. What did we do?

The service was open to the community every Wednesday between 11am and 2pm. Participants were able to:

• select items from three areas: pantry, bakery and fruit and vegetables.
• If available, meat, frozen meals and toiletries are welcome bonuses.

Volunteers fulfilled different roles such as collecting the food, setting up the tables, sorting and packing, welcoming and registering the community and serving the participants. It’s a great team to belong to!

Who did we support?

Many of our community have been people who are homeless, in temporary accommodation, or low-income housing, as well as families and individuals from diverse backgrounds struggling to make ends meet. No questions are asked.

All were welcome.

The feedback we have had from participants includes –

• that they appreciate the relaxed and welcoming environment
• not needing to provide any referrals or make a booking to attend
• the ability to choose their items of food
• feeling safe, respected, loved

“I don’t know what I would do without you all. This place is my haven and I couldn’t make it without you.”

How can you support the UCNA?

We are not accepting donations or new volunteers at this time.

Gifts of non-perishable items are very welcome, as well as financial support.

New Volunteers are always welcome. Volunteers can be rostered to come on a weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis.

UCNA currently provides 50-70 emergency relief food parcels every Wednesday to people in need. We rely on donations, and as the number of people in the community finding themselves in need of extra support is increasing, our supplies are almost exhausted each week. If you are interested in helping us, the following items are what we usually try and offer. Cereal and frozen meals are always needed.

Items can be given to UnitingCare North Adelaide volunteers that may have shared this with you, or dropped off at the Brougham Place Uniting Church, 196 Brougham Place North Adelaide, any weekday morning. If you would like more information please contact the UCNA Coordinator on 0420 692667 or ucna@bpuc.org.

Essential Goods List

Canned Goods

• Tuna
• Lentils
• Chickpeas
• 4 bean mix
• Baked Beans
• Tomatoes
• Pasta sauce
• Sweet corn
• Spaghetti

Dry Goods

• Pasta
• Sugar
• Cereal e.g. small packet Weetbix
• Instant noodles
• Biscuits – savoury
• Biscuits – sweet

Protein

• Chicken
• Sausages
• Frozen Meals
• Milk

As we welcome friends and strangers each week through our doors, God continues to surprise, enrich and renew us, our new friends and those to come.

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You can also donate below to UCNA to help support this ministry