In celebration of Get Online Week, the Birchip Neighbourhood House hosted a relaxed, friendly lunch with personalised technology support provided by Lynda Rumbold from Wycheproof on Tuesday, October 15.
Filled with neighbourly chatter and good company the free lunch was provided in partnership by the Good Things Foundation and FRRR: Strengthening Rural Communities.
Simone Christie, manager of The Birchip Neighbourhood House said, “We have been hosting monthly lunches as part of our FRRR project ‘Connecting and Learning: Food, Fun, and Fellowship’ throughout 2024 in the bar area of the Old Shamrock Hotel. The lunches have been hosted in conjunction with a range of partner organisations to raise awareness of topical issues relevant to our community members”.
This event, which aimed to bring community members together for a meal and social connection, and promote Get Online Week, was a heartwarming success, fostering fellowship among the locals and building digital skills.
Get Online Week is Good Things’ national campaign to close the digital divide. It supports people to feel safer and more confident online, so no one is left behind, and it is held every year in October in communities all across Australia.
Christine Richmond, president of the Birchip diocese of St. Vincent de Paul, was on hand to make tea and coffee for the guests, while they enjoyed their lunch and “blue” muffins, baked by Sharp’s Bakery as a tribute to the recently translocated blue tree on Glowrey Street, a local symbol of the Blue Tree Project, which aims to raise awareness for mental health.
Beyond the food and conversations, the guests were provided with practical support and advice on staying safe online. Lynda shared valuable tips on avoiding online scams and offered personalised assistance to those who had questions about using their mobile devices.
Lynda’s expertise was well received, with many guests taking advantage of the one-on-one help to address issues they had with their own digital devices.
The luncheon provided a wonderful mix of food, friendship, and learning, leaving attendees looking forward to the next community lunch which will be hosted on Friday, December 6, with a Christmas theme in Santa’s Winter Wonderland, which will be open at the Shamrock on Monday, December 2.