One in seven Australians are expected to seek a charity's help for food, bills and other basics over the festive period, new data conducted by Salvation Army suggested.
SBS Korean program looks back its exclusive report about a Korean community’s volunteering activity looking after the homeless community in Sydney published during the Homelessness Week in August.
A group of volunteers feed 25,000 homeless people a year. The 3,000 volunteers are all Korean migrants living in Sydney. They offer a free dinner from Tuesday to Thursday, 310 days a year in Central Station. Each time, each helper prepares hot foods at home at their own expense.
Korean foods such as Bulgogi and Japchae are one of the favourite menus.
One of the street people Marcus says the foods are delicious and really good.
The activity started seven years ago has been expanded dramatically with the support of Korean community churches and individual volunteers’ participation to contribute to society.
Jungsang Ihn is a founder of this homeless activity.
“As a migrant, it was hard to settle down in this country, and a lot of Australian people helped us help us to speak English.”
“Also, it’s time for us to pay back to Australian people and this is the way we say thanks to them,” Ihn says
The homeless community says the Korean volunteers quietly spread the message of hope in the street.
Julien has been to the free dinner for the last couple of years.
“Absolutely, it gives hope to people because these people are people taking time out of their everyday lives to come here to give people food. Just being a human. That’s what we all should be each other,” she says.
[The full story is available on the podcast above]
