Rev’d Dr Hugh Kempster Senior Chaplain
Diary of our
Senior Chaplain Engaging with the Karen Refugee Community I am thinking of my home, the mountains and rivers, the people, and the food! But I can’t think of it without thinking of the horrors going on there. It is... my birthday, and I have just had a call from the ThaiBurma border. The Burmese Army is building up its military forces in Karen free state again, and there are fears of another big new military offensive... The Generals will say it is anti-insurgent action, but as before they will avoid the [Karen National Liberation Army] bases, and instead attack defenceless villagers. Zoya Phan, Little Daughter (London: Simon & Schuster, 2009), p.325. Annie Naw Nyo is a dynamo. I first met her on a Saturday morning in September at St Andrew’s Anglican Church in Corio where she was busy organising the distribution of material aid for recently arrived Karen refugees. We arrived expecting perhaps one or two families, but Annie had gathered fifty or more members of her Karen community in Corio for this monthly event. On arrival in Australia refugees are given the basics for resettlement by our Government: a mattress, a plate, a knife, a fork, and so on. Voluntary groups like the Geelong Anglican Social Outreach Network (GASON), based at St Andrew’s, then work hard to fill in the gaps and help the families get established. The church hall was a hive of activity, but what happened next deeply moved all of us who were fortunate enough to be present. Through the telling of stories, Annie opened a window into a world that is hard to imagine from the safety and privilege of Geelong Grammar School. Sulayman Tun-Ismail (FB 11) one of this year’s Lorne 160 team, wrote this about the experience: Refugees. A word that is fraught with sadness, embodied with fear, and a story behind it. The Karen refugees, displaced from their home in Burma/Myanmar, have come to settle within Geelong Grammar’s surrounding area, Corio. The Lorne 160 have been raising funds for the establishment of their needs and to better the quality of life that they have here, through Anglicare Geelong. A group of six Lorne 160
1 representatives, Father Hugh and Mr Simon Haigh journeyed to the St Andrews Church in Corio to meet and create a relationship with the Lorne 160 and Geelong Grammar. Furthermore, the community shared their stories with us on how they came to Australia. Many of the Karen people did not speak English, however, with the help of their translator, Annie, their stories were told. Many of these stories reflected the tragic circumstances within the war-torn country, the corruption of the government and their army, and life within refugee camps. Some of the refugees, including Annie, had been living in these camps for over 20 years, while others were actually born in the camps. They did not have proper beds or pillows, using bamboo shoots in place, and the amount of food they received each day (some days the people didn’t receive food) seemed meager: a tin of rice with some curry. It has been an incredibly eye-opening and memorable experience, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to meet the Karen people The Lorne 160 team, led by Mr Ross Featherston, went on to fundraise $40,000 for the Karen refugees, and on Wednesday 18th November the cheque was handed over to the Rev’d Geoff Traill, Community Development Officer in Geelong for AnglicareVictoria and the Brotherhood of St Laurence, and the Ven. Neil Hicks, Archdeacon of Geelong, who are co-ordinating the resettlement efforts. Another initiative that grew out of the relationship with the Karen refugee community was the Year 10 service camp in term 4. On the first day we were joined by a group of Karen men, along with Mr Barry Sproull from Diversitat, an organisation that works with refugees and other ethnic communities in the Geelong region. The task seemed onerous; we were faced with a big empty paddock and a few fence posts. But by the end of the third day, and after lots of blood, sweat and - lost mobile phones - we
had together created the beginnings of a community garden. We had lots of fun along the way too, like a friendly game with the Karen Community Soccer Club, during which our Vice-Principal displayed his skills as a striker. We drew 1-1 and look forward to re-match soon. On the Thursday night we all gathered at St Andrew’s Anglican Church, Corio, for a feast of Karen food. Students went to the “little Saigon market” in Footscray to buy the food, and then helped prepare, cook, and of course eat it. After the meal we were treated to traditional Karen dancing and singing, and we replied with our own “Father, Hear the Prayer We Offer” and a legendary version of Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” from Mr Scudamore. We also went to visit the Collingwood College Kitchen Garden in Melbourne, started by celebrity cook Stephanie Alexander, and looked at other community gardens around Geelong for ideas. The engagement with the Karen refugee community this year has been a wonderful gift to us as a school. Sure, we have given, and given generously, but we’ve also received such a lot from Annie and her friends. Our eyes have been opened to life-experiences so very different from our own, and the friendship that is developing between our two communities is a precious thing. Rev’d Dr Hugh Kempster
1. Y ear 10 students on camp, working on the Senior Chaplain beginnings of a community garden for the Karen refugees. L to R: Jesse Andreetta (P), Kelly Banks (CL), Dannielle Baulch (A), Tom Belfield (P), Henry Byrne (M), Alex Cameron (A), Bella Cameron (EM), Brian Chan (M), India de Moore (GA), Amelia Faulkner (GA), Caroline Fieldus (EM), Millie Grimshaw (CL), James Hiscock (P), Iona Litchfield (CL), Anthony Liu (M), Nichole Ma (EM), Kat Oritz (EM), Annette Salim (EM), and Alia Tun-Ismail (GA). The camp was led by Mrs Kirsty McCartney, Mr Hartley Mitchell, and Mr John Slykuis; with Fr Hugh and Mr Simon Haigh.
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