Monday Muses~Craig's Table

After much waiting and anticipation, the Australian native bees have arrived -actually they arrived a short time back, so I am catching you up with the news.

Craig's Table now forms a part of the Cumberland Council native bee trail and supports the natural diversity in the area. What is interesting is to watch the participants watching the bees and getting exceedingly close to the beehive as the bees are sting-less

Also this last week the new chooks have started to lay eggs, it will take a while before the eggs are proper size, but for now there is great excitement as the "baby girls" have settled in and the "baby eggs" are arriving. One of the participants asked me "what are we getting next?" So I guess it is back to the drawing board on that one, because as yet I don't have the answer nor the space for "next". For me it was the question that was important, the question indicated that this particular participant was truly engaged and looking forward to all that comes with hope.

In some ways "what next" may not even be at Craig's Table, but it may be because Craig's Table has made it possible. One of the challenges Corey and I discuss on a regular basis is the families involved in a workplace injury. How the families get left out, overlooked, required to do more, all the shortfalls are very negative. Hence when a family member wants to start a small home based business; everyone at Craig's Table gets behind it in every way possible. The image is private recipe for dog treats. the yet unnamed business shows once more that when balance is returned with support and encouragement is in place. Plans for 2019 are coming together for this fledgling business. If you are interested in getting on the customer mailing list for now the best thing to do is send an email to [email protected] and we will pass it on.

And now for the really great stuff. Thanks to Second Bite Craig's Table is now able to pack food hampers and put quality food back onto the tables of the injured worker community-

I would hazard a guess that in the last few weeks close to $7,000 in groceries have come and gone through the doors of Craig's Table. It is a feeling that needs to be seen and be a part of to be truly understood. The non-perishable pantry still has a lot of empty spaces, each week more products come in so that the boxes of food can go out with a wide variety of staple products. The hugs and the relief come from the heart. Right now we have space for another 15-20 families from the injured worker community (within the western Sydney region) for more information send an email to [email protected]

As I told everyone last week it is my intention to apply for a Churchill Fellowship when they open next year. I have started to gather the connections and I have started to make appointments to speak with as many people as possible in order to be able to make the absolute best of the opportunity should my application be successful. In doing the research I have read research papers from previous recipients just to make sure that my line of thinking will dovetail into what has already been done whilst at the same time expanding what is already in place at Craig's Table. Everything at Craig's Table is built on trust and respect, there are days when exhaustion seeps in but even on those days trust and respect are the key drivers. So you will understand why when I read the following words I felt elated and definitely heading in the right direction for the entire injured worker community. :"Establishing a rapport with people is vital to helping them move from welfare to work. "listen to them, treat them with respect, be honest; understand their problems, identify their barriers to work and give them support to overcome these; help them to change their lives and deal with the practical issues such as child care and transport.": ":Provide incentives and eliminate disincentives to work. "ensure that policy contains financial incentives to work and a safety net if things don't work out.": Everything absolutely everything at Craig's Table now fits neatly inside these words. Craig's Table meets each participant right where they are, we help them find their feet and then find their dreams, we train them, and we engage with them, we give them things outside of their normal and now we feed them as well.

When the participant asked me "what's next" I really didn't know what more can be fitted into the space we have at Girraween- the need to expand is pushing on us each day, the coffee shop is starting to take shape as is the juice bar . Over the weekend I had a small conversation about a concept that has been in the back of my mind for quite some time. Then there is the need to continue to expand the level of pre-employment and post-employment training. All of it is forming into stage two as Craig's Table keeps pushing me to find the next level to build on and expand into. There are many things I don't know, there is one clear thing that I do know, I know that when a man who so rarely cries hugs you and you can feel the depth of emotion coming from within his heart and through the tears he says "thank you for believing in me" then I know that stage two will morph into something that will astound all of us. Tiny eggs tiny bees tiny dog treats not so tiny food hampers and hugs, come find all of it at Craig's Table.

And now it is dishes time again, there will be more to share about Craig's Table next week.

Yours in service

Rosemary

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Social equity for injured workers

craigstable.net.au

Global Goodwill Ambassador

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PS 20th Annual National Workers’ Compensation Summit