KINDNESS is the key for Ipswich native Roby Curtis, who celebrated World Kindness Day last Monday in the same way he has spent every day for the past ten years.
Mr Curtis founded the Emmanuel City Mission in South Brisbane and he provides a reliable place to turn to for the unhoused in the area. The Merivale St mission offers meals, shower packs and laundry for those who need it, along with a conversation.
“This is an open-door safe place free of judgement,” said Mr Curtis. “However, we have worked hard to build a culture based on kindness and respect. We can’t control what happens on the streets, but we can within Emmanuel City Mission walls.”
That urge to restore dignity is reflected by Hayley Dunikowski, service director at Hannah’s House in Ipswich. She said it was important to remember that the unhoused women that she helps were no different from you or me. They had often simply done it tough and fallen into homelessness but they could restore their lives.
