The effects of homelessness stretch far beyond the brick walls of urban cities and the sprawl of suburban homes, as Jack Dinkgreve from Parks Victoria spoke on its impacts on all levels of society.
Dinkgreve was among the panel of four during the Southeast Homelessness and Housing Alliance launch on Thursday, 31 July.
It was a common subject of discussion that stated homelessness transcended any kind of social barriers, where panellists spoke of it being able to affect anyone and everyone.
Dinkgreve has been with Parks Victoria for over 40 years and has worked with the Cardinia Shire Council, Victoria Police and Ermha365, to address homelessness within the Kurth Kiln Regional Park and the Bunyip State Park.
For him, the first notable encounter was in 2016, involving an incident of domestic violence between two men and one woman in a group camp.
“Staff tried to intercept and get the woman away from the two men, but then they ended up getting run off the road and threatened by those people,” Dinkgreve said.
“For me, that became a conversation with Victoria Police, they spoke to me about what we can do to protect staff, and the things we can do to address those who are homeless.
“These are people coming from different points in their lives, different perspectives, but for me, that was the starting point.”
From this point onwards, regular communication with Victoria Police was common, and it soon developed to a relationship with Cardinia Council, providing Dinkgreve and his colleagues with information about those who were homeless in the municipality.
It was that time that he also stressed the importance that the people he and his peers encounter are from all over the municipality, if not beyond, and that they, too, are part of that statistic.
“We’re seeing people who have been kicked out of their rentals that they might have been in for 20 years, and now they’re on the streets,” Dinkgreve said.
“They don’t know what to do, you know? A shocking one for us recently was a 25-year-old man who was in a canvas tent with his dog, Bo, and they had nowhere to go.
“He did have family, but he had a story; the family might support him, but maybe they didn’t want him in their house, and that’s really what we’re concerned about.”
These experiences and situations served as fuel and motivation for Dinkgereve and his peers when it came to establishing those connections and relationships with services that could lend that helping hand.
Dinkgreve said that having a relationship with Ermha365 has provided them with the avenue to effectively engage with those who are homeless.
“We might have an initial concept, but if we feel like there’s a need, then we’ll invite members from Ermha to join us,” he said.
“We’re evolving, and I think we’ve approached every interaction we’ve had respectfully and with empathy.”
Dinkgreve said that while he and his peers joined Parks Victoria, and do the work they do to talk about trees, birds or “fight a few fires and such”, homelessness was a state-wide issue, felt throughout all facets of everyday life.
He expressed the importance of connection, not just with one another, but through organisations collaborating, such as the Alliance, to tackle the issue of homelessness.
“It takes a lot of effort, and that’s why partnerships are also very important to us.”
