HOMELESS people sleeping at a Gold Coast church will be among the first to receive support from a new safe space for people on the streets. Members of the St Vincent de Paul Society’s Surfers Paradise conference have offered to pool together donations from the annual Vinnies CEO Sleepout and future financial gifts to build a centre that will get ... Read More »
POLICE chaplain Fr Paul Kelly chose working at a hardware store over packing his bags for the beach when his Schoolies week came around. As his schoolmates were preparing to party on the Gold Coast after more than a dozen years of schooling, Fr Kelly was working hard stacking shelves. “I couldn’t think of anything worse than leaving everyone only ... Read More »
SEVERAL female stereotypes were shattered at this year’s Love Being a Girl Conference at Aquinas College, Ashmore. Years 10, 11 and 12 students from across the Gold Coast registered for the unique girls’ conference, which featured workshops and guest speakers who encouraged the young delegates to choose the path to empowerment, boldness, resilience and beauty. They also helped them realise ... Read More »
COMFORT zones and I get along very well, so well in fact that they were once all I knew and anything outside of that was a massive no. I liked the familiar, the predictable and the expected. I learnt my limits, I knew how outgoing I could be without feeling self-conscious and I learnt how to take calculated risks. ... Read More »
SPIRALLING costs of living are forcing more families below the breadline, with increasing pressure on our most vulnerable, including children a snapshot of poverty in 2016 shows. The Poverty in Australia 2016 report – prepared by the Australian Council of Social Service – shows nearly three million Australians now living in poverty. The report also found more children living below ... Read More »
CAMPAIGNERS against human trafficking have joined calls for Gold Coast massage parlours to be licensed to protect vulnerable young workers. Josephite Sister Margaret Ng has reacted to reports that massage parlours operating as underground brothels were recruiting overseas workers ahead of the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Sr Ng said it was common worldwide for big sporting events to attract activity within ... Read More »
AS Pope Francis declared Mother Teresa a saint 19 years after her death, a tiny school community halfway across the world rejoiced. The ceremony to proclaim the Nobel laureate, who is recognised globally for her work with poor people in the slums of Kolkata, India, drew 100,000 pilgrims from around the world to St Peter’s Square in Vatican City. But ... Read More »
EVERY Friday, church volunteers turn the Nerang Community Hall on the Gold Coast hinterland into the Loaves and Fishes Food and Friendship Kitchen. As the name suggests there’s a cooked meal for all comers, and a chance to meet new friends. Loaves and Fishes has been operating for almost two decades and is enjoying a resurgence of interest, particularly from ... Read More »
GENEROUS Gold Coast Catholics contributed to the new altar and chapel inside Sacred Heart Church in Clear Island Waters, which was formally dedicated earlier this month. The church belongs to the same parish at Surfers Paradise where Bishop-elect Anthony Randazzo grew up and received his primary education. The bishop-elect returned to his childhood parish when it celebrated the dedication of Sacred ... Read More »
The Catholic Leader Keeping Faith with You
