* November 2021 *
In September last year, we presented our white paper, ‘Continuing the Mission: understanding and responding to the changing needs of the veteran community’ (see below), which was welcomed by the Victorian ex-service community. With this enthusiastic reception for our general proposals, we are now very pleased to present our Strategic Plan 2021-2025.
Together with our Purpose to ‘Serve Those Who Served’ and to continue to focus our support and accommodation services towards veterans, war widows and their close family, the new Strategic Plan has four ambitious objectives:
“There are a few important points to note”, says Janna Voloshin, CEO. “Firstly, that expanding our services – whether that is opening new services or extending existing services into new geographic areas – does not take away from our commitment to older veterans and war widows. Our residential and home care services for older people will continue, and grow.
“Secondly, we are not going to be working alone. These are significant objectives and there are already many organisations supporting and assisting the ex-service community. We are looking forward to strengthening our relationships with these service providers for the benefit of the ex-service community in our state.”
Vasey RSL Care has already made some important steps towards the vision for the future.
These are evidence of our commitment to the Strategic Plan 2021-2025, which gives firm timelines for the actions and projects that will be delivered in order to meet our objectives and goals.
* September 2020 *
Vasey RSL Care supports offers three services;
In its early beginnings, RSL Care was set up to provide accommodation and support for young men returning from World War I, especially those with physical and mental injuries, their motto being ‘to turn no one in need away’.
Similarly, when Mrs Jessie Mary Vasey set up Vasey Housing, run by the War Widows Guild Australia, she was looking to help the young women and their young children who had lost their husbands/fathers.
As the decades went by, both organisations underwent many changes and in each state of Australia, they have progressed in different ways. In Victoria, as veterans and war widows aged, their accommodation needs changed. Eventually, both Victorian branches built aged care homes to cater for the needs of their ageing communities in Victoria.
These two Victorian organisations merged in 2004 to create Vasey RSL Care.
Mike O’Meara OAM, Board Chair: “We hope never again to see the numbers of veterans and war widows that we saw after the two World Wars, but it is clear that more recent veterans and widows have very specific needs relating to their service, or that of their partner. Vasey RSL Care is well placed both to continue to meet the demand from older veterans and their dependants, while adapting to serve the needs of younger veterans and those in transition.
“Department of Veterans’ Affairs figures show that demand for the organisation’s services will continue to be strong.
“We are passionate about this: we have an exciting ten-year strategy and we would like to work with the whole ex-service community to bring these plans to fruition for the benefit of our unique community and to honour and maintain the vision and legacy of Mrs Vasey.”
“Victoria’s ex-service community is changing and the services that surround its members must adapt. Contrary to popular belief, the need is not in decline, though the needs are changing with the demographics of veterans and their families.”
It is with this opening paragraph of our White Paper that Vasey RSL Care draws upon industry and government research, data from the ex-service community, and the lived experiences of veterans and war widows and the staff that care for them, to present our vision for evolving veteran services for the coming decade and beyond.
While those in the ex-service community already know how important it is to understand the needs of people using Vasey RSL Care’s services, these needs are not well understood by the general community, which is why we have developed this White Paper.
With greater understanding we strive to encourage others to join us in improving services.
Our nation is proud of our ex-service men and women and we acknowledge the incredible sacrifice of their families. But pride and gratitude must be reflected in the services available to our ex-service community, and we believe much more can be done.
Vasey RSL Care is Victoria’s leading specialist in ex-service housing, care and support. We provide residential accommodation and care for more than 850 people, mostly ex-service. Every day, we see the unique needs of our veterans and war widows and have long recognised the need to keep adapting to the changing generations using our services.
The mission is not over, and it is the pledge of Vasey RSL Care to ‘serve those who served’.
This White Paper presents the changing demographics of ex-service people, their specific needs and our strategic vision to ensure all veterans and war widows continue to receive the support of a grateful Australian community.
We are committed to not only providing high quality care and services to the ex-service community, but to work closely and cooperatively with all others offering services to veterans, war widows and their families.
We value your ideas, your partnership and your dedication to ensuring the legacy of veterans and war widows is truly honoured.
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