Unfair and unreasonable are the words sung by volunteers at BK2Basics on the City of Casey’s permit requirements, as the charity’s plea to the public for VCAT funding continues to grow.
On a rather warm Friday morning, the line of residents had already extended out to the warehouse’s driveway, just 20 minutes after the doors opened at 10am.
Laurie Messenger recently celebrated his 80th birthday in May, and has been volunteering with the charity for several years.
His favourite part? Just being able to lend a helping hand.
“Well, I’m retired now and I enjoy the company and the challenge, we’ve got a lot of stuff that we [volunteers] need to sort out,” he said.
“But this also gives me that good feeling of being able to help others, to just lend a hand and help out.”
However, from his perspective on the council’s most recent extension of six months and the overall requirements of the permit are “disgusting”.
“We’ve got a good system going here, and they’re trying to put hurdles in front of everybody all the time.
“I don’t know how they keep going like that, and it’s full on [here]; I get here around 7:30am, and the people come in around 10am, and it’s full on.
“Because of the council’s rules, we’re not allowed certain things, and it makes it harder for us; but we’ve got that hurdle and we got to keep going,” Laurie said.
Fellow volunteer Tracy is on the same boat, with no need to recount the number of people that the charity sees on a daily basis.
She began her journey with the charity when it operated out of a home, and now “we’re back to square one with their restrictions”.
“It makes us feel disheartened because you know, for Craig and Kelly, this is their baby, but all of us put so much hard work and dedication into doing this.
“It really is disheartening because it’s going to affect a whole lot of people in the Casey area,” she said.
In light of the six-month leeway, the charity has recently announced a crowdfunding initiative to help support their application for a VCAT case, something that Kelly has publicly stated she did want to do.
“Kelly does not like asking anyone for help, let alone asking other people for money,” Tracy said.
“We’re here to help the residents of Casey who are struggling, and now, you know, the tables have sort of turned, and we’re going to be struggling to pay for VCAT fees.
“Council has made it near impossible for us to continue operating the way we have been for the last seven years.”
Posted by the charity on 22 June on Facebook, they stated that after receiving strong legal advice, their only real avenue was for VCAT action, with 28 days to lodge the appeal and total legal costs ranging between $10,000 to $15,000.
Posted on 25 June, the current funds raised sat at $5764, a significant amount just three days after the charity’s official announcement.
Katrina, who also volunteers at the charity, had only been doing so for just over a month, saying that she had heard of it and thought of nothing else but being able to help.
“I love seeing people being so grateful for the food they get, you know? We’re helping so many of them just to put food on the table,” Katrina said.
As people lined up in the warehouse, she was in charge of evenly handing out frozen goods, such as yoghurts, fruits, and even McDonald’s apple pies.
Reflecting on the council’s permit requirements, the only remark she could think of was that “it’s ridiculous that anyone would want to stop a charity from helping people out”.
“Like, I mean, looking at the amount of people that come through here just to get food, I don’t know why anyone would want to stop that, and it makes me angry,” she said.
This story is developing, and more information will be added once available.
