I started making my spirit woman about 6 months ago. I find arts and craft very therapeutic and I create different things on a regular basis as a part of both my self-care and a love for creating art. I paid a visit into the…
read moreWe know leaving domestic violence is never easy, but what we don’t often talk about is how hard the ‘what comes next’ part can be too. Recently I worked with a Mum with three small children who were doing it tough. Mum had no friends…
read moreWhen I first met Jenny and her 5 children, they were on the brink of homelessness. Eviction loomed and they had nowhere to go. A single mum and 5 kids, looking for a place in today’s housing crisis? Definitely not the easiest. So they came…
read moreBeing roughly one year into my job, I was very excited when Tracy asked me to join the team at the annual DVNSW conference. This is a 2 day conference where everyone who works with domestic and family violence and homelessness comes together to share…
read moreI’m Anyce, the new family worker here at Bonnie’s. In my role, I help women and children who are escaping domestic violence find safety, freedom and a better life. Even though I’m only a few weeks into the job, it feels like I’ve been doing…
read moreI am not a person who always likes change, but this year has been different. Earlier this year I moved out of my beloved house that I’ve owned for years, and now I’m moving again. In my case, I am fortunate that there are many…
read moreIt was 1996 and Diane was just 21 when she first started working at Bonnie’s. During her time there she saw Bonnie Women’s Refuge, a small grassroots feminist collective, begin to transition into the community organisation Bonnie Support Services is today. Lisabel Zoomed in with…
read moreHi Bonnie’s Blog readers, This is my first blog, so I thought I’d introduce myself: I’m Georgia, a member of the DVRE and Covid Response team at Bonnie Support Services. I didn’t always work with women or in social work, I was actually in hospitality…
read moreThis blog was written in reflection on our Happiness Is… campaign. A series of illustrations that celebrate the seemingly ‘small’ but powerful moments women experience when they are free from domestic violence. Read Program Manager An’s, Happiness Is… moment below: Every morning, I’m always rushing. I…
read moreMy first client here at Bonnie’s was an experience I will never forget, a young mum with three children who had escaped an abusive marriage. When I first met this particular family, mum was clearly overwhelmed. She was stressed, she was tired. She had lived…
read moreIt was New Year’s Eve 2021 and I was at work when I got the call that my Dad was in the hospital. The doctors had tried everything, and it wasn’t looking good – at that moment all I wanted to do was go home…
read moreFace to Face Creative Space is back! Ruth, my co-facilitator and I are so excited that after 2 hard years of trying to run this group during COVID lockdowns and restrictions we can finally be in each others physical presence again. The Creative Space is…
read moreHere at Bonnie’s, I’m the person who approves brokerage requests from my colleagues for the families they are working with. This means my team of workers will pop by, or write to me requesting anything their family needs. The requests range from social connections, removalist,…
read more12 months seems like a long time to help a woman to safety from domestic violence but it’s not. Not when abuse has existed in their families for years, even decades. As a caseworker, it’s my job to do everything to help break this cycle….
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