Pay It Forward - Ballarat East Neighbourhood House

The Ballarat East community pays it forward

"Dear Friend, Please be my guest and enjoy a coffee with this card to pay. We are all in this together."

It started with an idea by Shiree Pilkinton, the founder, coordinator and driving force behind the amazing A Pot of Courage Cafe at Barkly Square, Ballarat East. Shiree wrote, "I would like to set up a 'Pay It Forward' system to enable those who are isolated, but unable to afford a coffee/hot chocolate/tea, to still come in and join the Ballarat East Neighbourhood House Chatty Wednesdays group at our dedicated Chatty Tables. Let's create a system where vouchers are displayed on the wall. Those who pay a bit extra will be given a card on which to write a short message and add it to the wall. When someone needs to use that voucher,they simply take it off the wall and bring it up to the counter to 'cash it in'." Brilliant!

Shiree got in touch with local artists Pauline O’Shannessy-Dowling, Kelsie White and Lilly Wright (Cafe and Kitchen Coordinator of A Pot of Courage Cafe) who generously provided their beautiful artwork to the project. In partnership with the Ballarat East Neighbourhood House, postcards were printed in the seven designs and made available for purchase:$5.00 (a hot drink), $12.00 (a hot drink and piece of cake) or $15.00 (a meal for lunch).

There are some heart-warming messages on the postcards stuck on the 'Pay it Forward' wall, including, "I hope this coffee warms you up on these cool Winter days", "We can't be with you but we're thinking of you, so enjoy", "Remember: You are amazing! Enjoy your meal!" and "I just had my first meal at A Pot of Courage. I hope you enjoy your meal as much as I have mine."

So if you are in need, please take one of these beautiful postcards from the Pay it Forward wall and enjoy a hot drink, snack or meal in the cafe.

If you are someone who is able to donate to this great project, please consider purchasing a postcard for the wall. Pay It Forward 2.jpg

Together, we can help to reduce social isolation and bring some happiness into people's lives.

A Pot of Courage Cafe
Tuesdays to Fridays
9.00 am to 3.00 pm (coffee and cake from 2.00 pm - 3.00pm)
Saturday 10.00 am to 2.00 pm
apotofcourage.com.au
facebook.com/apotofcourage

The Ballarat East Neighbourhood House acknowledges the traditional owners of the land of Ballaarat, the Wadawurrung people.
We acknowledge their Elders, Past, Present and emerging and also acknowledge those people from other nations who, after being part of the Stolen Generations, chose to make Ballaarat their home.