When Melanie Michael walked into Katoomba Neighbourhood Centre (KNC) last year, wanting to organise something to ensure people weren’t isolated at Christmas, she received the warmest of welcomes.
“She walked in and said, ‘I’ve got this idea’ and we were ecstatic,” Josie Vendramini from the neighbourhood centre said. “That this woman with all this ability and vision and compassion would just walk in – we just thought ‘wow’.”
Ms Michael, from Katoomba, had simply seen a hole that she wanted to fill.
“I knew that a lot of the services close down over Christmas and take a break. I felt there was a need to have something that filled that gap,” she said.
KNC staff and volunteers couldn’t have been happier. They took care of the administrative side of things – insurance, venue, bookings etc – leaving Ms Michael to work on a program which included yoga, meditation, drawing, junk sculpture, felt art and more.
“It was designed to provide a place and a space to go to where people could have contact with other people, to have somewhere to go to to get out of the house,” Ms Michael said
The free classes were kept small so the experience wasn’t overwhelming and more than 130 attended, with participants ranging from 18 to 80 years old.
“People were stoked,” said Ms Michael. “They met people they probably wouldn’t have otherwise … and some of them exchanged phone numbers to stay in touch.”
The program was such a success there are plans to continue it throughout the year. The first class - meditation and yoga for beginners – will be held on Tuesdays in March. Contact KNC on 4782 1117 for further information.
Ms Vendramini said Ms Michael was “the prototype of the perfect community member” and invited anyone with ideas to contact them.
“What she’s created has made a genuine difference. That’s what we strive for – to make a positive difference.”
