Wine Tasting and Trivia Quiz
8 November 2017
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Those lucky enough to have attended the Buddies Wine Tasting and Trivia Quiz on 8 November learnt that buying wine from Goodwill Wines is not just an act of charity. Sure, $2 from each bottle you purchase is given to Buddies, but in return you get the pleasure of drinking some very good wine!
$346.50 was raised for Buddies on the night and so far an additional $96 has come from sales via the website.
Of the six wines we tasted, the ones that particularly appealed to those on our ‘wine trivia’ table were:
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Merlot 2010 (available in the premium mix): several of us are inclined to believe that Merlot is a nondescript ‘soft’ wine, but not this one (from the Yarra Valley). It was complex, rich, well-aged, and left a fantastic lingering taste of tannins in the mouth. It’s a wine you’d be happy to serve to anyone who likes a good red.
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The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon comes from premier Cabernet Sauvignon region in Australia, Coonawarra. It is an easy, not-too-heavy, not-too-light red to drink, and you’ll enjoy it before or with any meal (not just red meat as purists would have it).
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Even those of us who prefer reds to whites were all taken by the 2015 Riesling from Eden Valley (again, arguably the premier region for this type of wine). The Riesling tasted fresh and clean, but not too sweet, and would make a perfect accompaniment to a slow summer lunch.
Of course, if you prefer your white wines on the slightly sweeter side you might like to try the Sauvignon Blanc – the Goodwill Wines South Australian Sauvignon Blancs are sweeter than the Riesling, but not as sweet as many NZ Sauvignon Blancs. And then there’s the 2017 Sparkling Rose from Coonawarra that we all enjoyed on our arrival – it would make another very acceptable accompaniment to a long summer lunch.
Buddies Goodwill wine makes an ideal gift for Christmas or as a contribution to a dinner party. Enjoy Goodwill wine, and know that you’re helping Buddies help refugees and people seeking asylum.
– Gillian Duffy
Victoria and Abdul Film night
Our Buddies fundraising screening of Victoria and Abdul on Friday 29 September at the Nambour Majestic Cinemas proved to be a most enjoyable evening!
Numbers were down a little on previous screenings, but still, with more than 120 in attendance, plenty of food, great raffle prizes and the savouring of a very rewarding and ‘mostly true’ historical drama, I think all left feeling well satisfied!
We cleared over $1600. A big thank-you to all who spread the word and helped sell tickets, to those who donated raffle prizes and brought along food and to those who helped out with various tasks on the night ... we couldn’t have done it without you!
– Bronwyn Bell, 20 October 2017
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Buddies Food Drive
Buddies kicked off its food drive to assist asylum seekers in the community in Brisbane with a delivery of non-perishable food items and toiletries to the Romero Centre. Buddies Finance Group approved $200 to purchase this first donation, which Buddies members Margaret Norman and Gillian Duffy took down to Brisbane.
We’re hoping everyone can consider contributing at some point to this ongoing project. We’ll be collecting non-perishable food and toiletries at the monthly Buddies meeting and there are drop off points around the Sunshine Coast from Noosa to Caloundra.
– Gillian Duffy, 20 October 2017
Learn English Holiday, 17-22 September 2017
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The September Learn English Holiday proved to be a great success with 26 refugee guests ranging in age from 17 to 65 and from eight different countries – 15 from Syria, 3 from the Congo, 2 from both Somalia and Tibet and one each from Kenya, Afghanistan, Iraq and China.
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The range of nationalities made discussions on cultural similarities and differences very informative and great fun. Food played a large part in discussions, culminating in a multicultural dinner where our guests contributed examples of their national cuisine for all to try. A recipe booklet has been produced which will be available for download shortly. It was not only a gastronomic experience, the evening was livened by music provided by Luay, a musician from Iraq and a graduate of our last LEH. It did not need much encouragement for young and old to dance with great exuberance until we had to close.
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A big thank-you to the thirteen Buddies homestay hosts, the Buddies expert teachers who designed the week’s education program and the more than 50 teacher support volunteers, including students from Immanuel College, St John’s College and Matthew Flinders College, who all made friends with our younger guests and loved playing basketball at lunch time, despite the heat! Two outings, one to the Wildlife HQ at the Big Pineapple and the other to the beach at Mooloolaba, were enjoyed by all.
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Since we began to run the education program ourselves in April 2016, the biggest change has been the increase in the involvement of volunteers from Buddies, local schools and churches. This has widened the Buddies profile and the positive profile of refugees in the community. We hope this will lead to greater acceptance of refugees in our society.
You can help in this outreach by telling your friends about LEH and encouraging them to become homestay hosts or teacher supports. Please contact homestay coordinator, Kayla Szumer 0427 380 235 or teaching coordinator, Margaret Norris 0417 715 138.
Hi Kayla
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I just wanted to let you know that I have spoken with Vaha and Manochak since their Buddies English excursion. They are absolutely exploding with happiness and wanted to pass on the positive feedback. Some things they shared with me are:
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How incredible the family were that they visited, and they felt they became great friends
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Manochak said she has a new confidence in understanding and speaking English and a greater feeling of understanding in conversations
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Vaha stated they felt this was “an amazing program”
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Thanks so much
Anouska Nelson
Case Manager, Continuing Settlement Services (CSS)
MDA Ltd