Refugee Week will be celebrated in Horsham, on Tuesday June 18 from 11am.
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Inspirational speakers will entertain visitors with personal accounts of their experiences.
Refugee Week is an important opportunity for everyone to experience and celebrate the rich cultures of refugees and what they bring to our community.
Refugee Week 2024 will be held from June 17 to 23 2024 and the theme will be "Finding Freedom" with a focus on family as it encapsulates the profound journey of resilience, strength, and unity that defines the refugee experience.
Last year one guest shared how she fled a life of continual fear and threat. Soldiers were regular visitors to her village. She recalled how she and her siblings would swim out into a lake near her home to escape them. She would stay there until the soldiers left and it was safe to return to shore and walk home.
![Horsham Neighborhood House Horsham, Picture by Sheryl Lowe Horsham Neighborhood House Horsham, Picture by Sheryl Lowe](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/189654477/9a35df29-580c-458f-b275-a512221ceaff.jpg/r0_17_650_382_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Refugee Week, sheds light on the transformative power of familial bonds as well as chosen bonds in the face of adversity and emphasises the crucial role families play in providing solace, support, and a sense of belonging to those forced to flee their homelands.
Themed, Finding Freedom, gives us an opportunity to learn about refugees who, despite the challenges they encounter, discover a source of freedom within the embrace of their families.
Whether it's the unwavering support of parents, the protective love between siblings, or the communal strength found in extended and chosen families, neighbours, support systems upon arrival in Australia or the financial and emotional backbones that make the journey to safety possible, these connections become a beacon of hope in times of uncertainty.
This year there will be a Community Lunch at Horsham Neighbourhood House at 13-15 Robin St to celebrate this.
To help with people are encouraged to bring a plate to share and mix with others.