The term mother language infers that it is the language of your childhood, the language you babbled in, as your tongue first tested the basics of speech. Romantically, it conjures up thoughts of the words, songs and turns of phrase that washed over us as babes, said and sung by our parents and grandparents, the […]
Creating opportunity is a gravitational force at Spectrum. Commitment to justice for all underpins this at every level. As a key connectivity linchpin for newly arrived people in Victoria, and Australia’s largest single entity settlement services provider, Spectrum places access to justice as a constant thread within our everyday practise. It means that our teams, […]
Today is eleven years since the then Prime Minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd, moved a motion offering apology to Australia’s indigenous peoples on the floor of our nation’s parliament. On a rather warm afternoon, I sat with Sharyn Tambo, in the Spectrum Garden, to chat about what this anniversary means to her and her mob. […]
From China to Melbourne, via Indonesia, with love. As Melbourne erupts with a fifteen-day festival to celebrate Chinese New Year, one of the people gravitating into Melbourne’s China Town is Spectrum team member Jiayin. During this time, Jiayin celebrates with a big meal with friends, her cousins, and every year, except this one, with her […]
The 24th of January 2019, will be a treasured memory for Spectrum team member Saghar, and her husband Amir. On this day, they became Australian citizens. I sat down with Saghar to understand her journey and talk to her about what this brings for her. Saghar was an English teacher in Iran – she qualified […]
It is with deep sadness that Spectrum honors the passing of young client, Arash Yari, drowned off South Australia’s Fleurieu Peninsula, while on summer holiday on 15th January 2019. Arash, with his family, arrived in Australia from Afghanistan 18 months ago, and has launched himself into Australian life with gusto. The team at Spectrum has […]
On a warm summer day, a bus beetled out of the Spectrum driveway, and headed to the hills. On board was 36 excited clients and carers ready to stretch their eyes, and have a little bit of fun. The adventure commenced with a rather entertaining bus trip. The extremely humorous tour guide entertained the lively […]
As Spring was finally springing in Melbourne, a group of families from the Good Shepherd Primary School in Gladstone Park embarked on a special excursion to Melbourne. The adventure marked the final stages of the families’ participation in Spectrum’s ‘Parenting in a New Culture’ program. The program aims to help families who have recently arrived […]
Federation 20th Anniversary Lunch and AGM Late in 2018, the Federation of Northern Ethnic Senior Citizens Clubs (‘Federation’) gathered at the Greek Orthodox Church in Coburg to celebrate their 20th Anniversary. The Federation, by bringing together culturally diverse Senior Citizens clubs to share knowledge, learn together and advocate collectively, has had far-reaching grassroots impact for […]
A growing cohort of Australia’s homeless is women in retirement. This is Susan’s story about how life changes can create housing instability, and how homelessness can be averted. It was 1967 when a teenage Susan, along with her family migrated from Manchester England to Melbourne Australia. It proved to be a difficult move given she […]