Happy Holidays dear readers of the Lively Gazette!
Welcome to issue #19 of the Gazette and the quickly-approaching end of the year!
Alongside the usual suspects – Lively Tales, Pearls of Wisdom, a Talking Point, a story from our HQers – this Gazette showcases an exciting project: we are introducing some of our operational Helpers in a Pokemon/AFL-card fashion. You will read about them and their favourite hobbies, films and fascinations. I hope you enjoy putting faces to the many influential names within our organisation and know there’s more Helpers, and HQers, to be introduced in the months to come …
Finally, we would like to assure everyone that as a home care service provider, we will continue to support our Members through the holiday period. In-home Helper services will run as usual except on public holidays (unless pre-arranged with Members and case managers). The Lively office will close from Friday 23rd December 12 noon. We will be operating with a lighter team and available to take calls on Wed 28th 9-11am and Fri 30th Dec 10am-12 noon and open again on Tuesday 3rd January. For any urgent matters for Members, please contact your case manager.
The Gazette will also be taking a hiatus in January since I (Serena) will be away. So for now – I hope you enjoy this December edition of the Gazette, have a great festive season and see you in the new year! From everyone in our Lively Team, we wish you a Happy Holidays!
Member Roger’s Treasure Trove Home
This month’s Lively Tale comes from the Helper/Member duo Ann and Roger. Reflecting on his experiences with Lively Helpers, Roger told us how, “I am very happy with the quality and character of the two Helpers who have come over the past few months, Jeanne and Ann. Where do you find these people?” The following story was sent in by his Helper, Ann.
“Today Roger and I were unable to garden as it was raining so we gathered inside to clean some shelves instead. I asked Roger about some items as I cleaned the shelves and he shared lots of lovely stories about his knick knacks. Roger played a few songs on the piano and accordion to keep me entertained too! At the end of the session, we shared tea and biscuits as Roger shared a PowerPoint presentation of his trip to China. Rogers parents were married in Huili, China in 1924 and set up a medical missionary there. He travelled to Huili in 2019 to retrace his parents steps and recreated photos his parents took from almost 100 years ago! Roger also became a doctor just like his father. All in all, it was a wonderful & wholesome session indoors from the Melbourne rain.”
– Words from Lively Helper, Ann
Lively’s End-of-Year party: a success thanks to Hannah & her planning team!
“Drumroll please… we finally had our end-of-year party! Woohoo!
A small team of Helpers and HQers had been quietly but furiously working away to develop a game plan, and it finally came to fruition earlier this month, on a lovely, warm Friday evening! We had a lovely mix of Helpers, Members, and HQers all together at Lively HQ, with endless plates of food and fun activities to boot.
I was lucky enough to have the chance to lead the planning process; I’d mentioned the idea of a ‘Lively Christmas’ to Robin a whole year ago, and it had been bubbling away at the back of my mind ever since. A few Helpers and HQers jumped in to support the process, all enthusiastically taking on even the blander jobs, like picking up bags of ice and distributing sticky notes! We spent several weeks working together on the plan in the lead-up to the day. We discussed why we wanted to run this event and what we wanted it to look like, and then developed a run sheet (thanks, Xinran!), which allowed us to break down our intentions into tangible activities and practical timeframes. We then delegated the tasks to ensure maximum efficiency and fun.
The day was a great success, with plenty of game-playing, crafting, cookie-decorating, and chatting. Many of the attendees had never met before, but anyone passing through the space would never have guessed; there were so many great connections being made, and I felt that the ‘vibe’ really embodied everything that Lively is about.
A huge thank you again to the dynamic little team for all of your work! I am so proud of the outcome and I hope you all were, too.”
– Words from Lively Helper, Hannah
Lively’s Operational Helpers: putting names to faces
As many of you dear readers may know, Lively has allowed many Helpers to assume operational roles within the organisation, in addition to their Helper capacities with Members. At present, Lively has a Matching Team (Xinran & Hannah), Tech Mates Team (Chloe), Community Guide (Ann), Hiring Team (Lillian & Kay) and secretary role (Michelle) all filled by our incredible Helpers. Another example is me (Serena) managing Lively’s Gazette and Social Media. All of these roles are carried out alongside our incredible HQers who also introduce themselves later in the Gazette. This month, please enjoy hearing from Xinran, Hannah, Chloe and Ann by clicking on the square below. Please also note, there’s certainly more to come from our other operational Helpers in the new year!
December Helper Meet-Up: more action-packed than ever
Every two months, Lively invites us Helpers to attend a Helper Meet-Up on Zoom or in person at our HQ, Our Community House in North Melbourne. These bimonthly Meet-Ups are a great opportunity to catch up with Robin (our Helper Coordinator), learn the latest Lively administrative matters and meet fellow Lively Helpers we may not have met before (as well as rekindling with those we have).
“This month’s Meet-Up was chock-a-block with guest appearances from HQers Anna (Founder & CEO) and Paul (Operations Manager). Anna presented the data collated for the 2021-2022 annual report and showed us the meaningful ways Helpers are making impacts in Members lives. We then filled in a survey of our own experiences working within the organisation. Later, Paul and Operational Helper Xinran (mentioned above) joined our Zoom meeting to discuss some new resources made for Lively’s Tech & Tea sessions. Finally, Robin walked us through a new checklist to incorporate into our first meetings with new Members. All in all, this month’s Meet-Up was both incredibly informative and invigorating – I’m so glad I was able to come!”
– Words from Lively Helper, Serena
2023: A changing face for Lively Home Care
“Behind the scenes over the last few months, we’ve been working through some big decisions about the future of Lively’s home care package program. And we now have some important announcements to share!
The first is that our dear Care Manager, John, will be hanging up his boots and retiring in January 2023. This is a big deal for John, and for everyone at Lively who has had the pleasure of working with him. So you can expect more reflection on and celebration of John’s contribution in our next edition.
The second is that after almost four years of experimentation and service delivery, we have decided to cease the provision of home care package management and care management services in 2023. Instead, we’ll be continuing to connect Lively Helpers and Members to deliver our existing services, but through partnerships with other approved home care providers.
What does this mean in practice? Our home care provider partners will administer the overall care plans and budgets for Members, and will be responsible for arranging and brokering their full suite of care requirements - including services provided by Lively Helpers, and other supports like allied health, nursing, home modifications and more. For us at Lively, it means that our resources will be focused on delivering high quality relationships and support through our Lively Helper Service model, rather than also brokering and administering the full range of external services for our home care package Members - services that don’t all meet our core purpose of providing youth employment and intergenerational connection.
There’s so much background and thinking that has gone into this decision, and a range of factors that have been carefully weighed up. It was really important to us that the Helpers and Members who are part of Lively’s existing home care package program had a firm seat at the table throughout the process, and we worked through months of 1:1 conversations and group meetings to identify and weigh up our options, and to reach our decision. If you’re interested in delving into the background of this decision, the process we followed and the ultimate rationale, please feel free to explore this folder of key documents that chart the process and outcome.
For the team, our task is now to ensure a seamless transition for Members whose home care packages are currently administered by Lively. We are working with two wonderful, values-aligned partners who are committed to keeping Members’ existing supports and Helper relationships in place, and we’re confident that this change will work in the best interests of our Members’ long-term care arrangements. We’re looking forward to continuing to grow our work in the New Year with our network of fabulous home care partners, and to connect more and more Helpers and Members around our emerging core activities (click here).
Many thanks to all who have been involved in Lively’s home care program over the past four years, and for those who have helped us reach this important decision!”
– Words from Lively Founder & CEO, Anna
Lively 2021-2022 Annual Report: Sharing some of the love
Recently, Lively published our 2021-2022 annual report, which summarised the story of our year, including key activities, developments, challenges and learning. The report also shared the latest impact data that we have collected from Members and Helpers alike over the past year, showcasing general statistics and heartwarming quotes.
While some key statistics from the report are showcased in the infographics above, to check out the full report and read more about the year that was, click here. We’re so proud of the achievements of the year, and hope you enjoy the read!
Member Penny’s Docklands exhibition: a focus on People, Place, Culture & Vitality
“I had the great honour of visiting the launch of our fabulously talented member's, Penny Sharples, latest art exhibition titled "Melbourne: our creative heart" located at the Library at the Dock in Docklands.
It was a fantastic night to see Penny in her element. The exhibition launch was popular and filled with buzzing creativity and art honouring Melbourne's culture.
Supported by a City of Melbourne Arts Grant, seven women and artists collaboratively experimented in different mediums in small groups or individually. The exhibition had four distinct but interrelated themes: People, Place, Culture and Vitality.
Penny's collaboration with artist Lindsay Hussey (above) experimented with oil and cold wax as well as textile to create 'Ensemble'. They re-imagined the City of Melbourne flag, recycled frames and other materials, and used mirrors to let the audience be a part of the artwork!
I am so proud to be Penny's Helper and to support her in art career! *heart emoji eyes*
The exhibition is now closed but you can find more of Penny's work on Instagram @pennysharplesartist”
– Words from Lively Helper, Ann
December Pearl of Wisdom
Thank you for tuning in and until next time, we leave you with these parting pearls ...
Are you a Member, Helper or Friend of Lively with a pearl of wisdom (life tip or inspiring quote) or any content ideas for the Lively Gazette that you’d like to share with us? We'd love your contribution! Please email us at stories@lively.org.au if you would like to feature anything in the next edition!
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