Latest News

• Add My News • Search Old News

Gippsland › Latest news › Russell Broadbent MP

Sister Brigid Arthur's unconditional love and distinguished service to social welfare

Sister Brigid Arthur was made an Officer of the Order of Australia for distinguished service to social welfare, particularly with asylum seekers and refugees, and to Catholic education.

By news@gippsland - 28th July 2022 - Back to News

Bishop Philip Huggins described her as 'a beautiful soul who persisted in caring for some of humankind's most vulnerable people and does this with practical kindness - always kindness.' In her own words, Sister Brigid said that her motivation for decades of work with refugees and asylum seekers came down to.

Sister Brigid Arthur is a former long-term board member of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre and a litigation guardian for young Indigenous people and young people seeking climate action

Motivated by facts

A certain stubbornness, probably, that there are a lot of things wrong and while we can do something about them we shouldn't give up, we should do it. I think I'm motivated by the fact that neither one of us nor one organisation or government has the right to set up structures and adopt policies that are really cruel.

And that often doesn't recognise that the people who are being victimised by those structures and policies are quite vulnerable and need to be protected and not punished.

Unconditional love. We know what that's about with our own children; we give them unconditional love and support. But what about the unconditional love that comes from Sister Brigid? I had only known her as Sister Brigid; I didn't even know her name was Brigid Arthur. How is it that Sister Brigid can give unconditional love to the lost, the lonely, the broken, the poor, the refugees? Perhaps she even gave unconditional love to a parliamentarian walking a lonely road.

Pictures from Australian of the Year Awards website.

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com

• Danny O'Brien condemns Labor for empty social housing amid growing waitlists and rental shortages in Gippsland
  Danny O'Brien has criticised Labor for leaving social housing vacant as waitlists grow, citing fewer homes, shrinking rental availability, rising costs, and failed policies driving investment away in Gippsland South.
• Mayor Rochelle Halstead honoured with MAV 10-year Service Award for her dedication to local government
  Bass Coast Mayor Cr Rochelle Halstead has received the MAV 10-Year Service Award, recognising her decade of dedicated leadership, advocacy, and commitment to strengthening local government and the Bass Coast community.
• Gippsland Water completes Baw Baw Leak Detection Program, repairing hidden leaks to improve service reliability and reduce water loss
  Gippsland Water's Baw Baw leak detection program surveyed 425 km of mains, uncovering 128 leaks. Repairs improve service reliability, reduce water loss, and support proactive network maintenance across the region.
• East Gippsland Water launches new Voice of Customer program to enhance service through feedback
  East Gippsland Water has launched a new Voice of Customer program, inviting feedback via SMS surveys to guide service improvements, with participants eligible for monthly $50 water bill credits.
• Nationals pledge to restore Parentline funding, criticise Labor's decision to axe vital family counselling service for Gippslanders
  The Nationals vow to reinstate Parentline funding if elected, condemning Labor's cut to the vital family counselling service that supports Victorian parents, particularly in regional communities facing limited access to services.
• Danny O'Brien warns Bayside Health merger threatens Gippsland communities, confirming hidden health service consolidation
  Danny O'Brien criticises Labor's Bayside Health merger, warning it will reduce local hospital autonomy, limit community input, and risk services for Gippsland residents, prioritising bureaucratic cost-saving over patient care.