Spring is here! Hope every-one is enjoying the sun-shine and glorious blooms!

There are many new faces at LMCC during this term. We welcome Ling Yang (Holmesglen Institute), Jacinda Chung (La Trobe University) and Kimi Su (Monash University), who are here with us on Practical Placement. We also like to congratulate Nimisha Patel, our previous placement student from Box Hill Institute, on successfully getting a job. We have an in-house iPad class for Tutors, an English class for the Korean Elderly Group and an outreach ESL Conversation class at Uniting

Church, Forest Hill.

On 3rd September 2015, we held a Multicultural Morning Tea Fundraiser that was organised for earthquake victims in Nepal. We would like to thank Florence, Justin and Lillian for performing at the fundraising event. Also, many thanks to Sonia, who shared the devastation she seen while in Nepal. With the generosity of LMCC’s volunteers, students and guests, we raised a total of $973.05.

In October, LMCC will be having our Annual General Meeting (see details below). We look forward to seeing you at the AGM.

Message from the Office

Inside this

Issue:

Tutor’s New

Update 2

Fundraiser

for Nepal 3

Year 10

Students

Placement

3

Volunteer @

LMCC 4

September 2015

Save the date - All Welcome

Please join us at the LMCC’s Annual General Meeting, followed by an

“Embracing Diversity” themed afternoon tea . Enjoy tea and learn about

different cultures from our students, who will be showcasing their heritage.

AFTERNOON TEA AT

Embrace diversity and share a cup

of tea

at LMCC’s AGM

Wednesday, 28th October 2015 at 3pm

LMCC Suite 8, 27 Bank Street, Box Hill

rsvp: klozo@aanet.com.au / 92854850

By 20th October 2015

Tutor’s Meeting

The tutor’s meeting took place on Tuesday 25th of August 2015. It began with a lovely lunch prepared by staff and followed by The Manager of Eastern Community Legal Centre, Leonie Burnham, gave an incredibly informative talk on Elder Abuse. This is a problem that is more prevalent in our communities than a lot of us are

aware but there are no mandatory reporting laws anywhere in Australia so all too often cases go unreported.

Elder abuse is not an issue exclusive to any one culture, economic background or area and there are over 20,000 unreported cases in Victoria alone. Almost four times as many new incidents of abuse, neglect and exploitation are not reported as those that are reported to, and substantiated by ,adult protective services.

Leonie talked about what elder abuse is, who the most common perpetrators are and how police and community attitudes towards abuse, in general, have change in the last 30 years. She discussed the role the Eastern Community Legal Centre plays in assisting migrants and refugees, whose lack of English and cultural attitudes can make being a victim of abuse even more isolating and difficult. Leonie said that these cultural attitudes need to be understood before they can be changed.

Leonie also talked about the help that is available out there for victims and perpetrators but in order to break the cycle education is the answer and it has to start with children. In August it was announced that in 2016, respectful relationships education will be included in the curriculum from Prep through to Year 10 . It’s focus will be on challenging negative attitudes such as prejudice, discrimination and harassment, that can lead to violence, especially against women. It was an important and informative talk that shed some much needed light on a dark issue. LMCC will work with Leonie to develop materials that could be used in class. - Sarah Price

IPad Class for Tutors

An Ipad class for tutors was held on the 1/09, 8/09 and the 15/09. The class was conducted by Jonathan Lee.

Jonathan is currently studying a five-year course to obtain Bachelor of Commerce & Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering degrees. He was keen to contribute to the community. Halfway through his first semester of university, he joined LMCC as an office and computer volunteer. He was a committee member of the Manningham Relay for Life (Cancer Council) and will soon start volunteering for the RSPCA.

In his first 6 months at LMCC, he has been involved with a number of activities. First, he filled in as a computer tutor and then was responsible for writing an iPad course. Currently, he is running the iPad class for tutors.

The tutors learn how to use the apps and functionalities provided by the iPad, how to connect to Wi-Fi, how to use the App Store, the camera, Safari, FaceTime and more. The final week of the course invites the tutors to make suggestions and requests as to what they might like to learn. As a result of this course and of the questions and requests made by tutors, Jonathan hopes that they will leave with a better understanding on how to use the iPad and how much it can help in everyday life and as a tool for tutoring at LMCC.

Vijay Dalipram said the workshop was “interesting and informative”. It

covered the application of apps for emails, maps, calendars, taking photos,

sending photos, and accessing books and weather.

Margaret Crutch said: “ The workshop was very valuable and the teacher was

excellent. I was grateful to LMCC for the opportunity to learn. I inherited my

iPad after my husband passed so I wanted to learn to use it”

AMES Tutor Training Courses in Term 4, see office for details

Fundraiser for Nepal

On Thursday 3rd September volunteers, students and invited guests attended LMCC Multicultural Morning Tea Fundraiser. The purpose of this was to raise money to assist the earthquake victims of rural Nepal. Three Year 10 students (Florence, Justin & Lillian) from Carey Baptist Grammar School kick started the event with musical performances.

Our guest speaker, Sonia Downie, gave a talk about her experiences in Nepal. Sonia showed many pictures of her time in Kathmandu, Nepal when the earthquakes struck back in May this year. Sonia witnessed and experienced the horrors that the earthquakes left behind and was heavily involved in helping deliver food and medical aid to those in need. The raffle was drawn and four wonderful prizes were awarded to the lucky winners. We raised an incredible sum of $973.05. All the funds raised will go towards building a medical centre and toilet block in Dubachuaur. This will help the community gain access to basic medical supplies and services within their village without needing to travel far distances to get help. It’s great to see that even when disasters like this fade from the headlines that there are still people out there continuing to assist those in need.

After the presentation, everyone moved to have morning tea together. The food was in abundance, the room was buzzing with friends, tutors and fellow students catching up.

This event is organised by Holmesglen Practical Placement students Ling Yang & Svetlana Shcherbakova.

Year 10 students from Carey Baptist Grammar

Florence, Justin and I came to LMCC for our 2-day Enrichment Program and were unsure of what to expect. As soon as LMCC was recommended to us from a friend, we jumped at the opportunity to work in a place with a point of difference. Most students in our year level chose to work at primary schools or kindergartens, but we thought working in an adult environment would help us grow and learn how to work in an adult community workplace.

As soon as we entered the LMCC, we were welcomed cheerfully by Cindy and started work helping to set up for the ‘Nepal Multicultural Morning tea’. Florence, Justin and I quickly began practicing our musical items ready for the event and soon enough the ‘Nepal Multicultural Morning tea’ was off to a flying start! We performed three items including a violin duet, a solo vocal piece accompanied by piano and a violin and piano duet.

We love volunteering at LMCC, the office is always filled with laughter and smiles, everyone is accepted and welcomed with open arms. From our short time here, we have learned how an office is run, and most importantly understanding and respecting others from diverse culture within our community. - Lillian Barker

Suite 8, Town Hall Hub

27 Bank Street

Box Hill Vic 3128

Phone: 9285 4850 E-mail: louisemcc@aanet.com.au Web: www.louise.org.au Blog: www.louisemcc.blogspot.com

Important Dates

Term 4: Mon 5 October - Fri 11 December

Annual General Meeting 28 October 2015

Volunteer Thank You Dinner 25 November (TBC)

Student End of Year Party 1 December 2015 (TBC)

Volunteers @ LMCC

I am a student studying Information Technology at Box Hill Institute. I will be completing my

studies at the end of the year. Prior to joining Louise Multicultural Community Centre, I was

working as a volunteer for Vinnies Hawthorn as a Donation Sorter for seven months. During my

seven months there, my customer service skills have improved and a close bond was formed

with other staff members. It was an amazing experience.

I came to Louise to improve and validate my IT skills. Each week, Klaudia has given me small tasks to complete and

this has made me a stronger candidate. I am now more confident with my IT skills. I highly recommend anyone

looking for additional experience to consider LMCC.

James Levinh

Having volunteered at LMCC as an English tutor for the past two months, I dare to say that LMCC is the epitome of what multiculturalism embodies in the present era. The centre is a vibrant congregation of people with different cultural experiences. My involvement at LMCC has given me the opportunity to interact with people from different backgrounds and to learn more about their cultures. I have realised that students who attend classes at LMCC are not there only to learn English, but also to foster intercultural understanding.

As a student currently studying linguistics and applied linguistics as part of my Arts degree at university, volunteering at LMCC allows me to put into practice what I have learnt from hours of lectures and exhaustive readings. My role as an English tutor allows me to share my passion for the English language with other people. But ultimately, nothing gives me more pleasure than knowing that I am empowering people with the English language - a language that is so vital for life in the Anglophone nation that is Australia. The true reward of teaching English to refugees and migrants is knowing that you are able to help others.

Matthew Wong

I joined LMCC as a Practical Placement as part of my course from Box Hill

Institute. LMCC is a great place, and here I gained experience in the Australian

Workplace Cultural. During my placement, I learnt and practiced my

communication, organisation and administrative skills. These have certainly

helped me build confidence in many different ways. After completing my

Placement, I continued my stay at LMCC as a Volunteer.

A special thanks to the Klaudia, Cindy and Neven who helped and guided me

throughout this placement. Thank you to volunteers and students who made

this time at LMCC an enjoyable and rewarding one.

Now, I have received a very good offer to manage a business, which I am

delighted about. I will find time to visit LMCC.

Nimisha Patel