More than 470 Melburnians, including many in the west, have been assisted through a hamper project run by a Greek welfare society.
Non-profit organisation PRONIA started the project in November, to help members of both the Greek and wider community who experienced isolation and financial hardship during the coronavirus pandemic and its aftermath.
PRONIA’s Family & Community Services Unit delivered the relief hampers across Wyndham, Hobsons Bay, Brimbank, Melton, Maribyrnong, Greater Geelong and other Melbourne municipalities.
Each hamper consisted of mainly Greek products, staple and non-perishable foods valued at $50.
PRONIA received $15,000 funding from the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (previously known as Department of Premier and Cabinet) to support families and individuals in need.
PRONIA’s social worker and project lead Niki Fotias said: “We co-ordinated the project tasks, procedures and outputs in a way that was tailored to the needs of the Greek community’s vulnerable members.
“Also, our team consisted of Greek-speaking workers to ensure we engaged with the elderly Greek-speaking members easily.
“Our team dedicated time and effort to ensure the hampers reached those that needed them most and the emotional reaction and gratitude of the recipients has been our best reward.”
PRONIA’s chief Tina Douvos-Stathopoulos said that last year, the organisation experienced an increase in demand for emergency relief during the pandemic.
“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.
PRONIA also thanked Basfoods International for supporting the hamper initiative.
