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NAIDOC Week 2022

Get Up! Stand Up! Show Up!  The team from TASC joined the wider community on a chilly Monday at Toowoomba’s community NAIDOC Week event to celebrate and recognise the achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. 

Kids activities formed big part of the day and the TASC stand was no exception.  Sam and Patrick Anderson took the chance to do some colouring and have a break between looking at the other stands and activities. To welcome people to our stand we ran a raffle – with the lucky winner being Lisa Fisher. Congratulations on the win and thank you to Sam Anderson for drawing the winner.

Do you know about the Gumbi Gumbi tree?

This week TASC’s gardener, Barry planted our Gumbi Gumbi tree as part of our efforts to beautify our workplace.  Did you know the Gumbi Gumbi tree is a traditional aboriginal bush medicine from South West Queensland?  Traditionally it has been used for a wide variety of ailments including coughs, colds and eczema.  Currently there is academic interest in Gumbi Gumbi and how it is used traditionally, with a wonderful ABC article here.

Aboriginal bush medicine is part of the rich tapestry of indigenous culture, knowledge and achievements being celebrated during NAIDOC Week in the first week of July.

It’s a chance for all Australians to celebrate and learn about the oldest, continuous culture on earth and learn more about First Nations culture and history.  The team at TASC are busily putting together the final touches for their stand at this year’s Toowoomba community event being held at the Goods Shed in Victoria St on Monday 4 July and we would love it if you can join us to catch up.  NAIDOC week is a great opportunity to support and get to know your local Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander communities and we encourage everyone to join the activities. 

More information about NAIDOC Week can be found at www.naidoc.org.au .

TASC Toowoomba Office celebrated National Reconciliation week with an Office and Personal smoking ceremony

During Reconciliation week, staff at the TASC Toowoomba office participated in an office and personal smoking ceremony with Alan Martin. 

A smoking ceremony is an ancient aboriginal custom in Australia that involves burning various native plants to produce smoke, which has cleansing properties and the ability to ward off bad spirits from the people and the land and make a pathway for a brighter future. “We thank Alan Martin “Rainbow Warrior” proud Gungarri man for sharing his time and traditional cultural practices today at TASC. The ceremony has created a foundation to cleanse and heal us individually and together as a  team take forward the shared strength to continue to be of service to the community championing social justice for all”, Frances Klaassen, TASC CEO, said.

The National Reconciliation Week’s theme for 2022 is ‘Be Brave. Make Change’. This is a call for all Australian to be brave in their daily lives and to tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation so all Australians can benefit through an equal and united front. National unity will only be possible if we are brave and bold enough to call this out wherever we find it. “It was a beautiful event and such an important message for us to all continue hearing and absorbing. So much to learn about personal wellbeing, connection and healing from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.  A real gift to be able to have the opportunity to do some of that learning and connection at work”, Michelle Burrows, TASC Project Worker – Self–Help Advocacy Tool Project, mentioned. We are looking forward to NAIDOC Week which commences Sunday, July 3 and we will be joining the event on July 4 at the Goods Shed in Victoria St. We look forward to seeing you there

We believe in a world free from torture

It is possible to stop torture. We join millions of people mobilised into direct action to stop torture. Are you with us?

Torture is to inflict on a person something that is hard to bear, causing unbearable pain or suffering, whether physical or mental. Unfortunately, torture can even happen in a family environment.

26 June is an opportunity to call on all stakeholders, civil society and individuals everywhere to unite in support of the hundreds of thousands of people around the world who have been victims of torture and those who are still tortured today.

If you live in Toowoomba, Ipswich or its immediate surroundings or know someone in those areas experiencing any form of torture, contact TASC Legal and Social Justice Services on 07 4616 9700.

To learn more about TASC visit www.tascnational.org.au

FREE Evening Legal Advice Sessions

Are you needing legal advice outside of business hours? Then TASC may be able to help you in our after hours free legal advice sessions on Monday in Toowoomba.

Make sure to book in for our next sessions to be held on: Monday, 4th July (Family Law).

All sessions from 5.30pm – 7.30pm.


Face to face or phone appointments are available.

As our evening advice sessions are staffed by volunteer solicitors with varied experience the issues we can help with will change from time to time.

Bookings are essential. Contact us on (07) 4616 9700 to enquire whether we can assist you with your issue

Healing’s the focus for 2022 Refugee Week

Over 800,000 refugees and displaced persons have settled in Australia since 1945. The success of refugee settlement on Queensland’s Darling Downs has been hailed as an example for councils around the country as refugees are helping building the cultural fabric of regional communities.

This year’s Refugee Week theme is ‘Healing’. It raises awareness of the issues affecting refugees and promotes harmony and togetherness. The importance of human connections has been underscored by the pandemic and such lessons can help us in so many ways.  Mainstream and refugee communities alike can draw upon shared hardship to heal wounds, to learn from each other and to move forward. Healing can occur through storytelling, through community and also through realisation of our intrinsic interconnectedness as individuals.

TASC National calls Queenslanders to help protect seniors from elder abuse

Growing and aging is a natural process in life. As we grow, our bodies debilitate and we not only become more exposed to develop physical and mental deterioration but also to be vulnerable to abuse by someone we know. A family member or a friend can steal our money, threaten us to move out of our house or place us into a nursing home, hit us producing bodily injury, physical pain, or impairment, force us to have sex, cause us distress through verbal or non-verbal acts, neglect or even abandon us.

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) is commemorated each year on 15 June to highlight one of the worst manifestations of ageism and inequality in our society, elder abuse..

It’s time for us to acknowledge their importance and recognise they are entitled to the respect of their communities and especially their families.

If you live in Toowoomba and Ipswich or immediate surrounds or know someone in those areas who is experiencing any form of abuse you can contact TASC Legal and Social Justice Services on 07 4616 9700.

To learn more about TASC or to make a tax deductible donation, visit www.tascnational.org.au and click SUPPORT US!

Are you ready to listen?

Aged care is more than just a bed in a home, it’s a place where an older person is safe and cared for, a new “home”.

However, an estimated of 50 sexual assaults take place in residential aged care in Australia every week.

TASC joins the #ReadyToListen campaign to build the skills and capacity of aged care service providers to better respond to – and prevent – sexual assault in aged care. Visit opan.org.au/ready-to-listen to access this campaign resources.

TASC is funded by the Queensland Government to deliver Legal and Support Services to seniors. This free service is available to anyone aged 60 years and over and First Nations people aged 50 and over.

If you live in Toowoomba, Ipswich or its immediate surroundings or know someone in those areas who are experiencing any form of abuse, contact TASC Legal and Social Justice Services on 07 4616 9700.

To learn more about TASC or to make a tax-deductible donation, visit www.tascnational.org.au and click SUPPORT US!

Together, through volunteering, we are changing communities for the better

TASC would like to give a huge shout out to all volunteers, especially to our amazing TASC volunteers. To all the lawyers who assist with out of hours clinics in the evening so we can assist people after hours and finally to all the students and community members who support clients, answer phones (or emails in these times!) and fill out forms. Your act of kindness is essential for the TASC team to continue changing people’s lives and to work for our vision of social justice for all, together.

If you have a strong desire to help other, 𝑻𝑨𝑺𝑪 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂𝒘𝒆𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒋𝒐𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒍𝒂𝒘𝒚𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒓 𝒍𝒆𝒈𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒂 𝒑𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒐𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒗𝒖𝒍𝒏𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔. 𝑺𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒚 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒖𝒔 𝒐𝒏 (07) 4616 9700 𝒐𝒓 𝒆𝒎𝒂𝒊𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏@𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒄𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍.𝒐𝒓𝒈.𝒂𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒄𝒉.

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