The Huddle thanks Local Legends

Pictured: Yasseen Musa and Khalil Ali Khalil

The Huddle is beginning a new series to shout out the Local Legends in our community. This could be individuals and or groups in the community that are doing amazing work, especially during the pandemic.

This week’s Local Legends are the wonderful people at the Eritrean Jeberti Community in Australia Inc (EJCA).

The Eritrean Jeberti Community in Australia Inc was established in 2016 by experienced members of the community, to help newly arrived refugees and migrants from Eritrean background and other African countries to smoothly integrate with the wider Australian Community.

The group helps new arrivals with the necessary settlement needs, such as housing, banking, Medicare, Centrelink, enrolling in English courses and more.

To fill their vision and mission, the EJCA communicate and build a good relationship with government departments and organisations such as Victoria Police, sporting clubs, Co-Health, Salvation Army and The Huddle.

When the COVID-19 pandemic began, the EJCA organisation worked hard to spread awareness among its community members. When the virus broke out in the North Melbourne and Flemington housing towers, they were one of the first to arrive to assist the residents.

The group has held several information sessions in English and Tigrinya and post information in WhatsApp groups and their Facebook pages to spread the awareness and provide updates on COVID-19, and to help the community get vaccinated against it to protect themselves and their families.

During lockdowns, the EJCA distributed four rounds of culturally appropriate food, reaching more than 300 households. Each bag included an information sheet about the COVID-19 vaccinations in three different languages - English, Tigrigna, and Arabic.

Thanks to Local Legends such as the EJCA, the community they work with have been able to receive the tools and resources required to navigate through the pandemic and beyond.