Empty Shoes: a Vigil in Martin Place

Amber Lawrence

Jess Hill

Amber Lawrence and Sydney Philharmonia Choir

Lou's Staff (left to right) Alice Di Maggio, Gen Sakr, Shazya Singh

On 28 November last year, Lou’s Place held a vigil in Martin Place as part of the United Nations' 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. The vigil aimed to remember and honour all of the women who had, to date, lost their lives to family and domestic violence in 2023. 

 52 white balloons, each tethered to an empty pair of shoes, floated above the solemn public installation despite the wind and the rain. Each pair of shoes symbolized that, on average, one woman a week is lost to family and domestic violence. As of the date of the vigil in November, the number was tragically already 54. By the end of the year, it had risen to 63. 

The goal of the vigil was to raise awareness by fostering open conversations about domestic and family violence. It sought to humanise the issue, reminding everyone of the real people affected by these horrible statistics. Additionally, the event aimed to generate funds to support Lou’s Place, in its mission to assist women dealing with this crisis.

Lou’s Place is very grateful to our sponsors for the event Allens Linklaters, BGC, The Royal Bank of Canada, Parc Capital, Gresham, Wotton & Kearney, the City of Sydney and the Sydney Philharmonia Choirs for helping to make the day such a successful event.

Amanda Greaney, General Manager of Lou’s Place, spoke passionately to the crowd. She conservatively estimated that 80% of women who access Lou’s Place have experienced either domestic violence or sexual assault. Jess Hill, an award-winning journalist and author of See What You Made Me Do, served as the guest speaker for the event. Despite the drizzle, the crowd gathered under their umbrellas as Jess delivered a poignant message: 

“We are confronting an epidemic of coercive control that affects millions of Australians, essentially a process of psychological torture that goes largely unnoticed and at a scale difficult to comprehend. It will take all of us working together to end it.”

CMMA female country artist of the year Amber Lawrence concluded the vigil with a stirring performance of This Is Me accompanied by the Sydney Philharmonia Choir. Together, their performance instilled a sense of hope, illustrating what can be achieved through collective effort. 

Our Programmes at Lou's: Always Mum and Connecting Through Change

Seventeen mothers joined the first term of our Always Mum programme in February. This group of mothers, from diverse backgrounds, both reflects on and work towards individual goals for their children, who are in out-of-home care. They've built strong relationships within the programme, demonstrated by their empathy and kindness towards each other. The team leader at Anglicare’s Preservation and Restoration Service reported, “We have had several mums complete your Always Mum programme. We find it instrumental in their healing and working towards restoration of their children into their care.”

Term 1 of Connecting through Change began both its in-house and outreach programmes in February. The outreach programme is run through WHOS, a local drug and alcohol residential rehabilitation centre that provides a range of evidence-based, therapeutic treatment programmes. Lou's Place offers an onsite programme for women who are unable to leave WHOS to attend our core programme. 

Most enquiries for this term's programme were self-referrals, having heard about Connecting through Change through previous participants. We have received an overwhelmingly positive response from the 10 women who are near completion of the in-house programme. Furthermore, some women have become friends and are making plans to catch up. 

We received such lovely feedback from last term's group: 

• “I absolutely loved coming to this group! It gave me a safe place to discuss all I have learned."

• “My biggest take-away was that I am not alone, and I did not do anything to deserve what happened to me.”

• “I cannot thank you enough for this amazing programme. I have got so much from this amazing group.”

• “Shazya and Alice were fantastic facilitators. They are so kind and caring and obviously love their jobs. Big thumbs up to them both.”

OzHarvest Teaches New Cooking Skills For Better Health

Volunteers of OzHarvest's NEST programme have been teaching Lou’s women new cooking skills for better health. NEST (Nutrition Education Skills Training) is a six-week programme that teaches adults about healthy eating and easy, affordable cooking in a friendly and fun environment. Participants have been learning how to save money on their food budget by planning meals and reducing food waste. They're also learning to better understand food labels and store food safely. 

NEST is aligned with Australian Dietary Guidelines and works with everyone to set realistic goals around healthy eating. OzHarvest is currently running its second programme at Lou's Place with five participants. One woman who has coeliac disease says that she particularly enjoys learning about proper cutting techniques such as bridge cutting and rock chopping. She has also received suggestions for appropriate ingredient substitutions, which have been helpful with her meal planning.

Thank you to the OzHarvest team for offering this programme at Lou's Place.

Meditation and Breathwork Class

Nikki has recently joined our team of volunteers. She leads meditation and breathwork classes at Lou's Place, in which she brings women together to connect with the body. She uses a mix of yoga, Qigong, breathwork, meditation and dance. Nikki says:

"My class is about women healing. Just being together as women is powerful medicine. Breathing. Connecting to the body. I guide women with very simple movement and breath, ancient and intuitive techniques for calm, release and rebalancing. So many struggle with the concept of meditation, but I want to help people to discover its simplicity and the peace available to us all.”

Nikki's classes have been well received. Here's what her participants have to say: 

"It provides me with tools that I can use for various aspects in my life. Everyone should try it.”
“I love it. Nikki makes you feel great. We do a lot of stretches, meditation, and sometimes a bit of dancing.”

We are very grateful to have Nikki offer this vital service to the women at Lou's.

Support from the James N. Kirby Foundation

The James N. Kirby Foundation has been supporting Lou's Place with generous grants for the past 5 years. They are committed to supporting organisations that provide opportunities to those in our community who need it most.  In the past, we have received funding to support our emergency relief programme during the Covid pandemic, our daily cleaning service and recently towards our food budget. Thank you to the board of the James N. Kirby Foundation for your trust and support in the work that we do at Lou's Place.

Creative Writing Class

For just an hour a week, a small group of women come along to write and to share their thoughts with each other. Steaming cups of tea and baked treats in hand, pencils poised, students recently wrote about objects hidden in paper bags.

A nectarine

Firm to the touch, the nectarine isn't ripe yet. I run my hands over the smooth surface, curved like breasts, until I come to the tip. My fingers touch a rough, broken shoot, where it was connected to a tree growing in the sunshine. I can imagine myself lying under that tree and stretching my hands out through the green grass to reach for another fruit that's fallen from a low-lying branch. This one is soft and ripe to the touch. Its flesh has been pricked by birds and eaten by possums, I imagine. My fingertips trace its outline, getting sticky from the exposed flesh. Anonymous

HB pencil

This could be my art class pencil. It is as I remember it from primary school. The rubber in the end is for soaking up mistakes, re-doing shapes and lines, shading to do over again, more perfect or to my liking. We used to chew these tips of rubber, and the boys would throw them at us from across the classroom. Anonymous

Life at Lou’s

The Lou's Team

On 31 May, Lou’s opened its doors to welcome donors, allied services and friends to see its new, larger and more accessible premises in Redfern. The evening was designed to give everyone a glimpse of what life at Lou’s is now like. General Manager Mandy Greaney welcomed everyone to walk around the service and talk with the staff about the therapeutic programmes they lead. These include our drop-in service, our family and domestic violence programme 'Choice and Change,' as well as 'Always Mum,' a programme that helps mothers whose children have been taken into out-of-home care. 

Volunteers were also there to explain the activities they lead, with examples of work that clients had chosen to share. There were paintings and powerful examples of creative writing, as well as pieces from the much-loved sewing and jewellery making groups. Healing happens in many different ways at Lou’s, and the community and social acceptance of our activities play an important role in our holistic approach. By far the most moving part of the night was a short speech by Ting Ting, one of our regular visitors to Lou's Place, who wished to share her story of recovery as a way of thanking everyone who supported the service - and her.

Photographer: Amanda Lawson

Ting Ting's Story of Recovery

My name is Ting Ting. I have been receiving care and support at Lou's Place for a year now. I left a toxic, painful relationship and came to Sydney all alone. I struggled to pay $10 for a load of washing. While studying teaching at Sydney University, a classmate recommended Lou's Place. She said I could get all my washing done for free. It was such a big relief. Guess what? I found out that Lou's Place is a lovely, beautiful place, filled with amazing ladies. While waiting for my washing, I tried lunch here. The food is the best. It's freshly cooked, filled with loved, with all kinds of meat and veggies.

The lawyer, Tara, helped me find justice. She put the man who assaulted me on the train in gaol. She found me a stable place to live, so I can focus on studying and teaching. I joined a yoga class, learning about breathing techniques and practising self-awareness. I had a massage; I was so spoiled! I feel relaxed and alive. I also had my counselling here. I joined art class, creative writing, even a sewing class. I gave it a go, trying to be open-minded. All of these classes are really therapeutic. In art class, I can focus on the moment, only thinking about the beautiful things in life. In creative writing class, I had to practise writing using my five senses. Later on, I couldn't stop. I started writing in my own journal, trying to get closure for myself.

I am healing. I feel safe. I feel I belong here; it's my community. I learnt how to be assertive, how to stand up for myself, how to care for myself with compassion. I can see hope in life again. I guess I am no longer depressed. At the end, I want to express my appreciation to all the ladies at Lou's Place. Thank you for your smiling patience, care and empathy. I am always welcome here. I have never once felt judged. Everyone goes out of their way to provide support and professional services with devotion. That's what I hear from other clients too.

Lou's Place Programmes

In recent months, programmes at Lou's Place have been running at full throttle. From launching outreach groups to creating new content, and gaining increased recognition from local services, the growth and development of our programmes have been an exciting journey for the team.

Always Mum has supported 20 mothers with a collective 72 children through our 10-week programme. Each of these mums displayed an incredible amount of insight, strength, and dedication to building safe, nurturing relationships with their kids. 'Connecting Through Change' continues to grow and has seen 16 incredible women come together each week to explore the complexities and nuances of their individual journeys.

A highlight for our team has been the firsthand feedback that we receive from the women we support through our programmes, such as:

"This group exceeded my expectations; I have gained support through the wonderful facilitators and feel better equipped for future relationships.”

"It's because of this course that I did not go back to my ex. This course has helped keep me safe.”

We are deeply honoured to be part of these women's important life journeys, and to witness the profound connections they forge through the power of group work — built on trust, non-judgment, and collective empowerment.

Connecting Through Change - an outreach programme

In May, Connecting Through Change commenced a 4-week outreach programme in partnership with WHOS. WHOS is a local drug and alcohol residential rehabilitation centre that provides a range of evidence-based therapeutic treatment programmes. They contacted Lou’s Place on behalf of the women in their programme who have expressed interest in participating in Connecting Through Change. As these women are unable to leave the rehabilitation facility to access the group, Lou’s Place bridged this gap by delivering an onsite programme with core content from our 7-week programme. 

Two Lou’s team members provided domestic and family violence education to the women. Twenty-one participants completed the programme, and their feedback was overwhelmingly positive:

“I’m so proud of the two facilitators that came onsite. Well done and I look forward to seeing you at Lou’s when I am discharged."

“Now I know that I’m worth it."

“I am deserving of safety and respect."

“Violence is not ok."

The WHOS team reported that the women always left the group feeling positive, uplifted and empowered. Furthermore, they have recommended the programme to other women at WHOS. Lou's has been invited back to facilitate a second outreach group, commencing 25 September. We hope to make this an ongoing service. 

2023 NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards

Jennie Forsyth, Sarah Nelson, Nuria Zamora, Maryanne Galea, Jan Davies

We are very proud to announce that our Cooking Team at Lou’s Place was nominated for recognition in the 2023 NSW Volunteer of the Year Awards.  Regional award ceremonies were held across Sydney and included representatives of Lou’s Place in the City of Sydney/ Eastern Suburbs division, the Northshore division and the Northern Beaches area.  Long held as the part of the soul of Lou’s, our nutritious and delicious lunches are integral to the well-being of all the women who visit Lou’s Place. It has been a very well-deserved spotlight on the work that our culinary volunteers do.

Our lunch service is not an easy task. Over the last year, lunch has expanded to 40-50 serves per day. We have added an extra helper to make it three in the kitchen rather than two whenever possible. As deliveries to the kitchen are not received every day, our volunteers are often called to do the “Master Chef Mystery Pantry challenge” to create the meal.  That said, we are spoilt, as amazing salads, chicken dishes, roast vegetables and more are always on offer for our women.

Approximately 60% of our food is donated by OzHarvest, with the rest supplemented by online Coles deliveries. Extra meal supplies continue to come from TwoGood and our friends at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia. There is always a frozen or extra meal in the fridge for women who arrive at Lou's outside lunchtime and need to eat. 

Additionally, we are hugely grateful to our friends and partners who routinely deliver fresh bread, fruit and other treats for our women to take home with them.

Our food service is a life saver and our volunteers well deserving of this special recognition.

Photographer: Amanda Lawson

New Volunteer Positions at Lou's Place

Photographer: Amanda Lawson

We are thrilled to have several new volunteer positions at Lou's:

The All Rounder overs our busiest period of the day, from 9 am to 1 pm. A volunteer greets women who drop into Lou's, as well as helping them access showers, emergency toiletries and clothing. It is great to have another pair of hands to manage donations and/or general house issues. It has been a huge success and we are excited to roster more volunteers into this vital position.

Meditation and Breathwork now runs weekly and has become very popular. We are very grateful to be able to offer this calming and centring service to our women.

Finally, we have a hairdresser again. Visiting once a month, this service has been met with much enthusiasm. It is amazing how a 'freshen up' can lift the spirits. It has also gotten a few of us off the hook from requests to cut hair...

Thanks, as always, to our amazing team of volunteers.

Lou's Place has solar panels!

Photo: supplied

Lou's Place was grateful to receive a Community Building Partnership grant from the Department of Community and Justice, which  enabled us to install solar panels on the roof of our Renwick Street building. Our electricity consumption is considerable, due to the commercial grade washing machines, dryers, fridges and freezers that are running throughout the day at Lou's. With the use of the solar panels, we look forward to reducing our electricity bills and cutting down on our environmental footprint.

Lou's Closet Sale 2023

Lou's Closet Volunteers

Our 2023 Closet sale was held in May, once again at the beautiful Manly Golf Club, resulting in another extraordinary year of selling both brand-new and second-hand designer wear. This year’s sale raised over $112K.

The generosity of our wonderful clothing donors, plus brand-new donations from Carla Zampatti, Bianca Spender, Camilla and Moss & Spy enabled us to create a “Designer Emporium” which, once again, proved to be a huge success.

Curating the closet sale each year requires an enormous amount of work. We are very grateful for our incredible team of volunteers. They not only give their time, but they also really enjoy being there. It is wonderful to see the joy radiating through the room. The buzz, the banter and the friendship make all that hard work worthwhile.

We are already in planning mode for 2024.  If you have been cleaning out your wardrobes in preparation for summer and would like to donate to next year’s closet, please give us a call. We are more than happy to come and collect your brand-new and/or second-hand designer clothing. From all the closet team organisers, a huge and hearty thank you; we look forward to seeing you all again next year! 

Contact: Eugenie Karangis M: 0414 473 740 E: Eugenie@lousplace.com.au

Eugenie Karangis & Jenny Pridham

Photographer: Amanda Lawson

Increasing numbers at Lou's Place

They always say, "be careful what you wish for."  At Lou’s Place we wished to help more women, and we are certainly reflecting that wish! For the first time in our 24-year history, we need to roster women in some of our busier classes. Participants in sewing and jewellery are having to take scheduled turns. Our lunch service is regularly now at 40+, not the 20+ that it was in Potts Point. Our house is buzzing and although on days of the full moon it can be a bit zany, Lou’s Place has been able to retain its safe, homey feel.

A recent analysis from Homelessness Australia has found financial difficulties and housing affordability stress skyrocketed in 2022, driving a surge in demand for homelessness support, with NSW, WA, TAS and SA worst affected. Furthermore, 2021 census data reveals that while incomes have grown 5% over the last two years, rents have increased by 28%. The latest census reports a 5% increase in overall homelessness; 56 % of those experiencing homelessness are women and children.

Our bigger premises at Redfern and our community outreach means that we now have the capacity to welcome more women. For the first time last year, Lou's provided meals for more than 100 women during the Christmas period, from 27 to 30 December. This is historically a lonely and stressful time for many of our women. January 2023 also saw a record 708 visits.  Our resourceful kitchen volunteers have certainly noticed that it's been busier of late. The volunteers - and during busy times - the staff too - "chop and chat" together to produce such delicious and nutritious meals. One volunteer says, "Not a service goes by without a woman commenting on how much they appreciate having a hot meal. For many, this may be the only substantial food they have that day." Another kitchen volunteer remembers a woman saying, "all the food served at Lou’s was cooked with love." For her, "That is what volunteering at Lou’s is all about." Sharing a home-cooked meal at the long kitchen table at Lou's provides not only nourishment, but much needed social connection and an opportunity for women to tell their stories. A heartfelt thank you to all our kitchen volunteers.

Always Mum continues to grow

Always Mum is a unique 10-week programme supporting mothers with children who have been removed and are in out of home care. The programme helps them learn to be better mothers and to improve their relationships with their children. Since its inception in 2019, Lou's is proud to report that 102 mums have completed the programme, and 22 children have been restored to their mothers' care. Furthermore, Lou's has developed a strong partnership with Women's Legal Service NSW. This service provides mums with legal advice and education about the Child Protection System and Children's Court Process, as well as the opportunity to consult a solicitor for individual legal advice. In fact, the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) in the NSW Children's Court documents it as a recommended programme for mothers to attend. As a result, we have received an increased number of referrals from both the DCJ and government-funded child protection services. 66% of the referrals from our current group are from DCJ case workers. 

Over the last six months, 22 mums have completed the programme, along with their 73 kids. We also provided Christmas support to 19 mums, which helped them to cover the cost of gifts and Christmas visits with their kids. We've received some great feedback from mums who've complete the programme:

What have I learnt in the last 10 weeks of Always Mum?

“Never give up."

“How to acknowledge my children’s feelings and thinking from a child’s perspective”

“To forgive myself.”

“There are places I can reach out to for support!"

What would my kids say if they knew I had done Always Mum?

“My mum finished mummy school.”

“They would be proud of their mum and the hard work she has done to bring them home where they belong.”

What advice would I give to other mums with kids in OOHC?

“Do Always Mum – you will feel like you have an army behind you.”

“Stay connected, reach out and build your village.”

Two new workshops within Always Mum

Always Mum is offering two new workshops under its umbrella. The play workshop aims to teach mums the power of play time. Many parents can find immersing themselves with their children in play a challenging experience. Mums are taught effective strategies such as child-guided play and hands on play activities. Mums are also taught P.R.I.D.E. communication skills: praise, reflect, imitate, describe and enthusiasm. Together, these skills assist mums in promoting positive behaviours and relationships with their children. Ten mums attended our recent workshop, and it was great to see them come together to learn in a collaborative and therapeutic space. Their feedback was positive, with all mums expressing how much they enjoyed tuning in to their inner child and having fun.   

The self-care workshop teaches mums critical skills for true self-care. Mothers with children in out of home care devote a lot of time to completing programmes, attending children’s court and meetings with the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ). Combined with ensuring meaningful, positive contact with their kids, finding time for self-care can be difficult. The workshop explored the importance of self-care in stressful situations. Mums discussed difficult acts of self-care, including eating well, getting adequate sleep and exercise, and attending counselling sessions. They then brainstormed different self-care activities such as: connecting with a community, meditation and mindfulness practices, and progressive muscle relaxation, all of which are easily accessible and low cost. 14 mums attended this workshop. Again, it was met with positive feedback and requests to run similar workshops on a more regular basis. It was encouraging to see the mums provide one another with support and encouragement, and to validate each other’s experiences. 

Connecting Through Change

Photographer: Anna Turner

Lou's now offers "Connecting Through Change," a 7-week face to face programme which investigates the drivers and impact of domestic and family violence. The aim of the programme is to focus on victims' and survivors' strength and resilience to help them through their healing journey. It explores themes such as a woman's place in society and the impact of gender inequality, as well as the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships. It also helps women to identify warning signs within their relationships, and it explores the importance of boundaries and how to implement them. Lastly, the programme investigates self-care as a lifestyle, rather than a singular event. It provides women with an understanding of how the brain works, and it offers practical and accessible strategies to implement self-care. Seven women have just completed the programme. One of the participants described the programme as "extraordinary and simple...that has provided a lot of clarity about what is okay and not okay in my life." Lou's is looking forward to offering this programme to more women throughout the year.

Lou's Place welcomes new staff members

Shazya Singh came to Lou's Place as a student in September 2022. She loves the culture of acceptance, inclusivity, advocacy. She has a BSc (Psychology) from the University of Sydney and a Master of Social Work from the Australian College of Applied Professions (ACAP). She also has experience in consumer research and insights. In February 2023, Shazya joined the staff in her new role as the Domestic and Family Violence Case Manager. In addition, she facilitates the "Connecting through Change" program. Shazya says, "I love how each stakeholder, from staff to board members, volunteers to our charity partners, contributes to making Lou's Place a safe space for women. To me, Lou's Place is a community of strong, resilient women, that celebrates diversity and always operates with a person-centred approach." 

Hannah Kelly joined Lou’s Place as an Intake and Administration Support Officer in September 2022. She's loved working here since the first day. She completed a Diploma of Community Services at TAFE in February 2022 and she has experience working as a youth mentor, and a marketing and administration assistant. Hannah is drawn to the sense of community at Lou’s, as well as the fact that it helps women by meeting them at their point of need. She loves being able to empower women and provide them with dignity and respect. And, she appreciates being part of a supportive and hardworking team. She says it helps "to be able to lean on one another and come to each other for advice."

Lou's has a new freezer

A big thank you to the Potts Point Rotary Group, who donated the funds to purchase an additional freezer. They have been such good supporters of Lou's Place.

Rebecca Fitzpatrick, Board Member, and Brigit, Rotary Volunteer