November marked an incredibly important milestone for Rosies Queensland and all of our friends as we kicked off a year of celebrating 35 years of sharing friendships. For 35 years, we have been the grateful recipient of generosity, love and commitment and for this; we are forever grateful. The dedication our supporters and volunteers have shown has helped us connect with so many who were feeling let down, unloved, or disconnected.
To mark this important milestone, we took a life-sized cardboard Rosies van cut-out on a tour to 25 sites across Queensland to help raise awareness of homelessness and disadvantage and the amazing work Rosies does in building community and creating friendships and connections for people who are homeless, experiencing financial hardship, socially isolated/excluded or lonely.
These pop-ups allowed people who had never heard of Rosies to stop by and learn more about homelessness, our work, and to speak to some of the 1500 incredible volunteers that have made the last 35 years possible.
The celebrations have been an opportunity to reflect on the wonderful work of love, care, connection and friendship that our volunteers, patrons, donors and supporters have shared since 1987.
Rosies has become a constant in the lives of Queenslanders in need. It is estimated that our volunteers have had over 1 million hours of genuine conversation with patrons and made at least 2 million warm and savoured drinks.
Rosies has come a long way since the Oblates first brought Rosies to Queensland and worked with that first group of wide-eyed young people whose mission it was to extend the hand of friendship and acceptance to School Leavers and the local homeless population on the Gold Coast. Rosies has grown and evolved over the last 35 years but the mission of love, acceptance and friendship has remained at the forefront of every activity we undertake. Our 1,500 volunteers deliver this message each time they look a patron in the eye and ask, “How are you?” Our school communities live this message through their many fundraising drives, awareness activities, and outreach programs. Each member of our community helps to spread the Rosies message through their financial and in-kind support, sharing their story of Rosies or keeping Rosies close to their heart in thought and prayer. Every kind interaction both consciously and subconsciously and for that, we thank you.
For our 35th celebration, we also had the great pleasure of partnering with Brisbane artist, and former patron, Jake Moss to create a one-of-a-kind merchandise range that includes vibrant T-shirts, caps and totes, with proceeds going back to Rosies to keep vans on the street.
Jake has been homeless twice in his young adult life and said volunteers from Rosies helped him turn his life around by being there for him, chatting to him and caring about him.
“I’m so honoured to have had the opportunity to design this merch because it’s a fantastic way for me to show my enormous appreciation for Rosies,” Jake said. “Rosies volunteers saved my life.”
