MercyCare recently celebrated the contribution of migrants to the local community as part of International Migrants Day on Thursday, 18 December 2014.
The not-for-profit organisation’s Mirrabooka base provides support services to hundreds of migrants, refugees and newly-arrived humanitarian entrants – one of whom was Vietnamese migrant Theresa Pham, who has made the transition from volunteering to working with MercyCare herself.
What began as a short volunteering placement at MercyCare in Mirrabooka four years ago has led to full-time employment and permanent residency in Australia for Theresa.
The 27-year-old received her permanent residency in Australia earlier this year, which she says is her “very happy ending”, thanks to the support of MercyCare, which sponsored her application.
Theresa trained as a teacher in Vietnam, and came to Perth five years ago on a student visa to study a Diploma in Community Services at West Coast Institute of Training in Joondalup. As part of her studies, she undertook a placement with MercyCare in Mirrabooka, and continued to volunteer at the organisation for two years.
Three years later, Theresa is still at MercyCare, having accepted a full-time paid role which allows her to share her experiences as a migrant with other people new to the Perth community.
As MercyCare’s Assistant for the Community Support Program, Theresa runs the Keys For Life program, which assists people from the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) community to apply for their Learner’s Permits through the Department of Transport.
Theresa also assists MercyCare community support officers to organise programs and services tailored to meet the needs of people in the local community, including conversational English classes, life skills programs, art and craft class, sewing classes, computer basics, citizenship workshops, a walking group and assisting clients to complete job applications online.
“I love my job. It’s quite challenging, and of course I learn a lot of things,” she said.
“A lot of people tell me that I have the benefit of my personal experiences of being a migrant and have been through a lot of these processes myself, which helps me to assist my clients who are in the same situation.”
MercyCare Chief Executive Officer Chris Hall said Theresa’s commitment, both to her volunteering position and now to her employment with MercyCare, sets an excellent example in the community.
“Migrants bring an enormous amount to our community, and it’s our chance to celebrate this during International Migrants Day,” he said.
“MercyCare was delighted to support Theresa’s application for permanent residency, and we’re enormously pleased that Theresa can now call Australia ‘home’ permanently.
“Theresa has a wealth of experience which has proved invaluable to the running of the program and understanding the needs of our service users. Theresa is very popular with our clients and, in particular, the Vietnamese community. Her patient and cheery disposition is always welcoming and inclusive to both clients and stakeholders.”
MercyCare is a leading Catholic provider of aged care, family, health and community services.