Want to become a resident at the IHH?
Written by Anthony   
Sunday, 05 October 2008

Residency at the Indigenous Hospitality House

Image Some haunting questions…

What does it mean for non-Indigenous people to offer hospitality to Indigenous people on stolen land?

 

How can we serve Christ in the stranger?

 The Indigenous Hospitality House is a share house with a couple of spare rooms to host Indigenous guests who are in Melbourne for medical appointments or to support a family member in hospital.  The House is overseen by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Congress and supported by the Church of All Nations and many other churches and organisations.

 

Some practicalities…

Money

  • $80 a week rent ($347 per month)
  • $40 per week food
  • $45-$50 per month bills

 

House duties

There are 15 shifts of house duty a week to be covered by residents and volunteers.

Currently, we are asking residents to do 3 shifts of house duty a week.

This consists of 1 weekday and two evenings.

 

Daily House Person

We have one person around between 9am and 6pm to welcome guests, take referrals, change the beds and be a presence in the house.

 

Evening shifts

We have two people on duty in the evening between 6pm and 9pm, one to cook and one to help.  This involves preparing a meal for guests and residents, cleaning up afterwards and being present for the evening.

 

Meetings

House meetings fortnightly, currently held on the second and forth Monday of the month.

Broader Community meetings held on the first Sunday of the month: 12noon lunch, 1pm to 3:30pm meeting

 

Retreats

The IHH goes on two retreats a year at Gembrook Retreat.

 

  • The Easter Retreat is a time to reflect on the Easter story, and on significant events for Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Australia over the past year.  We ask residents to come for at least some of this weekend, while recognising that people often have other commitments over Easter!
  • The Annual Review takes place on the first or third weekend of the term 3 school holidays.  This is a time for residents and the Broader Community to review the project over the past year and plan for the next 12 months.

 

Occasional activities

Part of our role is telling supporters and other groups about the House and what we’ve learnt by being a part of it.  This may mean speaking at the occasional church service, conference etc.

 

We also visit Narana Creations in Geelong once a year to do some cultural awareness training with members of Congress.

 

 

To find out more please come and share a meal with us.   Call us on 9387 7557.