An Altona-based support service for young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness has been inundated with community donations for its food pantry.
Rhonda Collins, who heads Latitude: Directions for Young People, said there were about 175 people on the current priority waiting list for housing across Hobsons Bay, Maribyrnong, Wyndham and Moonee Valley.
An estimated one in 200 people are homeless across the four municipalities.
Ms Collins said she was overwhelmed with the response after traders put out a call for winter food donations to help the homeless.
“Altona RSL gave us a donation, a van-load of food,” she said. “We also got a donation of noodles from Rotary … we get support from Lions, and the knitters [at Altona’s Louis Joel Arts & Community Centre] give us blankets.
She said most of the service’s young clients, particularly those in crisis or having just entered the service, did not have gourmet tastes or great cooking ability.
“When they give us donations, they’re really thoughtful in that they’re cups of soup, tins of soup, coffee, long-life milk – really practical, useful things,” she said of the donors.
“With the noodles we get from Rotary, all you’ve got to do is add water … if they’re setting up at Half Moon Caravan Park, they can do that.”
Ms Collins said young people had open access to the groceries they needed from Latitude’s food pantry.
“They can just come in and take what they need – and what is really interesting is that they only take what they need,” she said.
“They’re very aware that what we have has to go around a whole range of young people, so they’re very supportive of each other in that sense.”
For more information about Latitude, contact Ms Collins on 9315 0061 or email rhonda.collins@latitudedirections.org.au.
