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New team Member joins NECA |
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Pamela Yensch is our new coordinator |
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Would you like to be a voluntary advocate for someone from your local community?
There are many people in the Melbourne north-east region who have a disability and need someone to give them some time and encouragement. North East Citizen Advocacy is....
- a community based program in your local area
- a program that creates a relationship between a volunteer from the community and a person with an intellectual disability
- a way for advocates to defend the interests and rights of people with intellectual disabilities
- where advocates are matched with their protégé (partner) on a one-to-one basis
- where the relationship takes its direction from the needs of the protége
- where each relationship is allowed to develop according to both people's needs
- a way for people to make a real difference in their local community.
The NECA program works throughout the area to link up with people who have an intellectual disability and need support to deal with issues in their lives. The coordinator undertakes to seek out people who would otherwise not come to anyone’s attention. This can involve visiting places like nursing homes, boarding houses and so on. Sometimes the person with the disability makes the approach to the office, or another concerned person alerts the coordinator. Citizen Advocates are volunteers – they each make a commitment to being an advocate for one person, a person who needs an ally. Countless positive changes have occurred in people’s lives because they have had an advocate to stand by them. Citizen Advocacy is a 'one-to-one' endeavour, and advocates find that the opportunity to share and develop their own personal skills and resources on behalf of another is really rewarding. For many, this results in a long-term and valued personal commitment. |
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