Hi Permies!
I have been reading here for a long time and thought it was about time I jumped in and said hi!
I (Steve) and my better half (Rach) are working on establishing an outreach program in Gippsland, Victoria (Australia) for families facing tough times. We envision an extensive
permaculture farm system that will provide not only a venue but also all the food and
energy needs for low income families to take a holiday with out any cost to them.
Australians love their camping but often the trials of life restrict families from being able to afford this luxury. Many children grow up missing out on any real contact with nature, without ever spending real quality time with their family away from home. The pressures of life take a toll on family relationships and sometimes the opportunity for a break can help families refocus and bond. There are a lot of families struggling with drug, alcohol and gambling issues in Victoria and Rach as a full time drug and alcohol counsellor sees many heart breaking stories every day.
Our goal is to establish a farm style retreat where families, couples or individuals can come and take a break from life for a weekend or week with all the financial barriers removed for them. We would provide food and camping gear, a campsite and wonderful natural setting where they can walk and pick fruit from the
trees, sit and chat round a campfire, go fishing in the
pond,
feed the animals and do all the other fun activities that farm life brings. We would also offer free councelling services if the need was there and plan to keep a cash fund available to help families with fuel costs etc. Our aim is to remove all barriers for families to have a much needed break.
We envision referrals to stay on the farm coming from councelling services, church groups and other outreach programs.
At this stage we are putting a comprehensive plan together with the view to use a crowd funding service to get the
project going. If anyone has any tips or ideas to help get this project humming we would love your feedback. If two heads are better than one, then a massive group of Permies must be even better than two
Looking forward to chatting with you all!
Thanks Steve
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