Sewing for a cause

Yun Ni Htwe (front). (Damjan Janevski) 208310_01

Ewen McRae

While most classes at Djerriwarrh Community House have been taken off-site, one group of dedicated volunteers is making a difference in the fight against COVID-19.

The English for Sewing group is still meeting at the centre, with students and tutors spaced out over two rooms, with plenty of hand sanitiser and observing all social distancing requirements.

The group has been busy sewing scrubs and wash bags for Western Health since the pandemic broke out, providing much-needed support for the health service.

Djerriwarrh Community House Coordinator Tahir Naeem said they were happy to help out where they could.

“Djerriwarrh has a long term partnership with Western Health, providing training for many applicants who go on to Health Services Assistance traineeships at Western Health campuses,” Mr Naeem said.

“We are very proud to be able to support Western Health at this challenging time.”

English for Sewing is a group of mostly Burmese students who come together to improve their English and maths while learning to sew at the same time.

Mr Naeem said sewing is a skill they can use within their family and that can lead to paid work.

The group joins similar projects in Wyndham in providing support scrubs for Western Health, which operates a number of hospitals and health services across the western suburbs. Western Health will also operate the Melton Hospital when that is completed in the coming years.

Ewen McRae