A long-running free lunch program that feeds some of the community's most vulnerable people is under threat due to a lack of funding.
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Warrawong Residents Forum's program was started in 2003, in response to crime prevention research that showed many people committing offences were doing so to meet basic needs.
It is viable thanks to a part-time coordinator position which is filled by Donna Walsh, who oversees the program and turns the food that comes in through organisations like OzHarvest into three hearty meals each week.
Any food left over at the end of each lunch service at the Warrawong Community Centre are portioned out, frozen and given to vulnerable people as needed.
WRF manager Ash Castro said Ms Walsh's work had also brought a sustainability element to the program, as it used some 1000 kilograms of salvaged food that could otherwise have gone to waste.
So far the position has been funded through piecemeal grants and donations, but that money is set to run out on February 7.
Volunteers helped deliver the program, Mr Castro said, but without Ms Walsh, WRF ran the risk of exhausting its capacity.
As the only other paid worker with the organisation, Mr Castro said he was concerned about managing the program alongside his other responsibilities in meeting the community's needs.
"I'm not a chef, nor do I have a hospitality background," he said, whereas Ms Walsh did have experience in the industry.
Mr Castro fears that people would fall through the cracks if he had to take on the additional work of managing the program.
The timing is particularly bad because WRF will have to move out of the community centre for about two and a half years when the facility is knocked down and rebuilt.
Mr Castro said losing Ms Walsh meant losing a set of hands to help through the transition into a temporary premises.
He has applied for several grants, but is still waiting to hear back.
Mr Castro hopes to secure funding of at least a year to ensure the position continues for at least the next 12 months, although it would be "brilliant" to guarantee it until the move back into the new community centre.
He has calculated that a minimum of $40,000 would keep the position for a year.
Warrawong was a community in "desperate need", he said, and demand for the lunch program had only increased.
The rising cost of living is playing a big part.
"Our client numbers have gone through the roof because we see not only our most vulnerable, but the working class as well," Mr Castro said.
Wollongong MP Paul Scully is appealing for anyone who can contribute to funding the program to come forward.
"It's an important service for lots of people, providing some their only meal of the day," Mr Scully said.
He has also approached the Minister for Communities, Natasha Maclaren-Jones, for help but had not heard a response.
Ms Maclaren Jones said the NSW government funded the community centre with over $100,000 to provide 'targeted early intervention' to help those most in need.
She said she had reached out to the community centre to discuss further government support.
"My priority is for everyone to have access to the services they need to secure a brighter future," Ms Maclaren-Jones said.
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Natalie Croxon
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
