Children of refugee families in the Illawarra often become the de facto head of the family, leaving them little time to be kids, according to refugee advocate Alexa Peggie.
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"Kids often pick up English quicker and assimilate into new cultures better then the elders of the community.
"This puts a lot of pressure on them," she said.
"It's important for them to have a support network."
Strategic Community Assistance for Refugee Families (SCARF) hopes to employ a full-time youth worker with the proceeds from the Art4Refugees exhibition.
SCARF receives no government funding and depends solely on donations and volunteers.
The exhibition is the organisation's main fund-raiser and is in its eighth year.
Organiser Pamela King said the event had a positive response from the local art community.
"All proceeds go straight to SCARF, artists donate their work completely with no commission," she said.
"We have lots of generous artists."
Elizabeth's family fled Myanmar and arrived in Australia in 2008 when she was 13 years old.
"English came naturally to me but it was really hard because I didn't fit in at school," she said.
After joining SCARF's homework program, Elizabeth made connections with other children in same situation.
"Even though we were from different countries, we fit in and understood each other," she said.
Elizabeth is now studying to be a nurse and is a volunteer at SCARF.
The Art4Refugees exhibition runs until Sunday at The Illawarra Grammar School.
