News

Hello Everyone!

We are Samuel and Cecilia, and we have been volunteering for the Anxiety Disorders Association of Victoria (ADAVIC) for many years. Next year will mark ADAVIC’s 25^th Anniversary and we feel honoured to be a part of such a wonderful organisation that makes a genuine difference in people’s lives.

Anna Kouloubos founded ADAVIC in 1994, during a period where she was also suffering from Anxiety and Depression, and noticed that there was limited support and resources for those within the Melbourne and its wider community experiencing mental health issues.

As you may know, Not-For-Profits are a vital part of any local community. Unfortunately, as volunteers we often witness the many challenges that organisations such as ours face on a weekly basis, with a major one being a lack of necessary funding.

We would be incredibly thankful and appreciative of any donations that you wish to generously give, as no amount is too small. The funding we receive will increase our capacity to provide services such as support groups, phone & online support as well as other services that we are committed to offer.

All donations over $2 are tax deductible.

Thanks in advance.

Cecilia and Samuel

ADAVIC Volunteers

https://www.gofundme.com/support-adavic-in-supporting-you ?

A note about the AUSTRALIANS-ONLY CLOSED GROUP ON FACEBOOK

To our dear members,

I hope this finds you all well and enjoying the sunshine that Melbourne has been putting on for us.

I wanted to get in touch with you all to let you know that there are going to be some changes to this group coming soon, and I wanted to give you as much notice as possible with regards to this.

This group has developed in ways I never thought imaginable over the last few years. It was originally started as a spin off from our open page for localised information and resources after significant changes to Facebook which meant many of you were not receiving the helpful and most relevant information in your feeds. Given the size of the open page, opening a smaller, Australian only page, felt like the best option. However, the way this page has grown and evolved has meant that our services were not necessarily reaching the right people or supporting you all in the most effective way possible.

As such, I wanted to let you all know that we will be closing this group as of the 28th February 2018 at 9.00pm. This is primarily due to the above reasons, but also the lack of funding and resources that the organisation has access to. This is just the first step into some really exciting things that ADAVIC has planned for its members, to ensure that the best support, resources and information are provided to you all. As with any organisation trying to provide the highest quality service, adaptation is necessary, and we know that this may have some significant impact to a number of you, so we wanted to provide you with as much notice as possible and assist you through the transition process. The open page will continue to operate in the same manner, including the private messaging service, with our administrators still working with and supporting you on the page. As always, the phone support service is available to you all 10:30am-4:00pm Wednesday through Friday on 03 9853 8089 and our weekly support groups will still be in operation. If you are in need of crisis support, Lifeline is also of course available 24 hours, seven days a week on 13 11 14.

A little taster of the exciting news to come in 2018 is that ADAVIC will be piloting Online Support Groups allowing for great peer support and shared lived experience, which will be facilitated by trained ADAVIC volunteers. We will be sure to pass all information on to you all as it becomes available, but we are truly excited for these programs and we are sure you will love them too.

A quick thank you to our wonderful admin team – we all know how much work goes into the recruitment and training of new volunteers, and the time dedicated to ADAVIC and to you all is just incredible, and I couldn’t be more grateful for you all.

All the best,

Anna Kouloubos
Founder/Managing Director

Do you like laughing? Of course you do. It’s an evolutionarily engrained bio-mechanism that helps us relieve stress and connect with people. So why not get your daily dose of laughter at the ‘Best of the Fest’ comedy night at the Comic’s Lounge! Tickets available here…

For just $20 dollars, you get to see a huge line up of international and Australian comedians. This is a fundraising event for ADAVIC (Anxiety Disorders Association of Victoria), a not for profit organisation that relies on donations and events like this one to stay afloat.

Heck, if you’re a Grinch and don’t like comedy, just chuck us a twenty and stay home. But in all seriousness, we really appreciate anything you can spare. Every little bit helps!

Bookings: http://bit.ly/2nSbCa7

Sign the petition by clicking here

If in crisis please reach out to
Lifeline on 13 11 14

Lifeline saving lives – Crisis Support, Suicide Prevention

Lifeline is a national charity providing all Australians experiencing a personal crisis with access to 24 hour crisis support and suicide prevention services.
They are committed to empowering Australians to be suicide-safe through connection, compassion and hope.
Their vision is for an Australia free of suicide.

Bunnings BBQ Sausage Sizzle Fundraiser 2017

On Saturday 18th November ADAVIC hosted a fundraising BBQ at Bunnings Warehouse Hawthorn. The team were once again very excited to be back behind the grill ready for a busy day ahead. It was a very beautiful sunny day until 3pm when the heavens opened and rained cats and dogs for the next hour. Even with the unexpected weather change the day itself was a great success, raising the organisation almost $1,500 of much needed funds!

We would like to thank all of our volunteers who contributed tireless efforts in the lead up to the event, and an extra special shout out to those who helped run the day: Terri, Jess, Kate, Jenni, Terrie, Zarina, Cecilia, Samuel, Danielle, Mel, Dave, Tam and our little munchkins Sierra and Jacob who made sure we had plenty of drinks and napkins ready to go and were also happy to give out ADAVIC brochures.

As well as the hard work and support from our wonderful volunteers, the day simply could not have been a success without the generosity of those who donated produce, services and/or funds towards the running of the event. Firstly, a big thank you to Bunnings Warehouse Hawthorn and in particular Samantha Mitchell the lovely Activities Organiser who made our team feel welcome and for providing us with amazing opportunity to fundraise.

Another big shout out to both Don’s Smallgoods and Metcash for donating all the yummy sausages; We are also grateful to Baker's Delight in Kew for their donation for the best thing…sliced bread.

Coles Hawthorn and Woolworth Kew keep supporting us each year with community vouchers – thank you!

Last, but not least, thank you to a number of private donors—you know who you are!

~The ADAVIC Team~

Terrie Said with Nathan Buckley, Collingwood Coach

MEDIBANK MARATHON FESTIVAL 2017

In October, our lovely long term volunteer Mel Jeffress took part in the 10km Melbourne Marathon Festival and she successfully raised $675.00 – thank you Mel!

Mel Jeffress

Grill'd Local Matters Program

In September we took part in the Grill’d Local Matters donation program in Richmond. Once again we were successful in securing a $300.00 donation as we received the most tokens from people who purchased a burger – thank you to Grill’d Richmond and their customers for their support.