By Justin RouillonWednesday 4 Aug 202196five MorningsSocial JusticeReading Time: 3 minutes
Listen: Josh Plumb speaks to Tim Bain about Nexus Care; a Brisbane charity who provide hope and help to the community, especially those at risk of homelessness.
If there’s one thing that this current season has brought home, it’s that our lives can be turned upside down by events that are outside our control.
Even in parts of Brisbane that many would describe as comfortable or middle class, you don’t have to look too far to find those who have fallen on hard times, or are at risk of homelessness, often through no fault of their own.
Nexus Care in Everton Park are one of those local organisations digging beneath the surface and helping those who are at risk of homelessness, as well as community members who are just struggling for the basic necessities of life.
Josh Plumb is the executive manager of Nexus Care and told 96five’s Tim Bain that they took a holistic approach, and wanted to journey with their clients to help them overcome the issues they face.
“Nexus Care has operated for the last ten years and we’ve met some amazing, resilient people in tough situations. They’re often just thinking about ‘how do I get the bare necessities I need today’.
“For us, we journey with people in a range of ways, from our initial emergency relief with our nutritious food and financial relief programs. But it is very much about the flow into our mentoring programs as well, which is journeying deeper with people towards goals that they’ve set for themselves”.
Josh Plumb from Nexus Care in Everton Park.
Josh said that even an area such as the inner north west of Brisbane, which is perceived as a comfortable middle class area, there are many who are on the verge of becoming homeless.
“When we began we did six months of community consultation, we looked at a lot of data and we realised that a lot is below the surface. On the surface it looks very much like that middle class area, but we saw quickly that there were many people doing it really tough.
“A lot of the people we meet are homeless and have different experiences of that, but many people are on the verge and trying to make ends meet on a day to day basis, so that they don’t end up homeless.
“They’re the people that we’ve met the most over the past decade; this is something that exists in all our neighbourhoods. COVID has reminded us that we have a shared humanity and that those tough seasons can come out of the blue and affect any of us.”
Josh said that over the past twelve to eighteen months, Nexus Care has supported many who’ve experienced a job loss for the first time in their careers.
“The impacts of the pandemic has seen some people lose work for the first time in 40 years. We’ve supported people from industries such as tourism, airlines, as well as professional roles. It’s not just blue collar roles and it’s across the spectrum.”
“For those people it can be very difficult to ask for help, and we count it a real privilege to hear someone’s story and help them.
“We provide what in the bigger picture can just be small support in healthy food, financial assistance, encouraging words and a smile, but for people going through hard times it can lift spirits, it gives hope and it makes a difference.”
To find out more about the work of Nexus Care, listen to the full interview with Josh in the audio player at the top of the page.
You can also visit their website to learn more about supporting or volunteering with Nexus Care.