Griffith residents 'celebrate unity' at Centacare Refugee Week dinner

Centacare hosted its annual Refugee Week dinner on Thursday night, with up to 70 local residents of various backgrounds enjoying exotic meals and acknowledging the journeys they have made to end up in the Riverina.

Food for the night was supplied by the Afghan Friendship Restaurant, a venue with migration at its heart, but residents also took the chance to bring in their own meals and show off the tastes that make their backgrounds so unique.

Centacare's Joanne Fitzpatrick says the night "went very well" and was all about acknowledging how crucial migrants are to Griffith.

"This is the fourth time we have hosted the dinner and it was just a lovely evening," Mrs Fitzpatrick said.

"The idea behind the dinner is to acknowledge the long and difficult journey people have made to come and live in the community and also to acknowledge the hard work and contribution they are making to the area."

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The night began with a dance and welcome to country from Tirkandi Inaburra which was followed by a joyful few hours testing out the range of foods and sharing in scintillating conversation.

"I think everyone that attended enjoyed the night and it's such a lovely time to spend with people and to see their happy smiling faces is a privilege," Mrs Fitzpatrick said.

"We had some police officers come by and join in on the night and there were some young girls from Pakistan and they were very excited to see female police officers."

The night was also attended by representatives from a number of groups that helped organise the event, including Rural Australians for Refugees Griffith, the Red Cross, Intereach, Sisters of Mercy and Griffith City Council.

Mrs Fitzpatrick was full of praise for the impact migrants have had on Griffith - in particular their role in making the community "diverse and strong".

"They have really enhanced this community and I think we're all just so glad they're here," she said.

The Refugee Dinner was cancelled last year due to the pandemic and the capacity of this year's event was limited due to continuing restrictions - but Mrs Fitzpatrick said she is hopeful that next year's dinner will be back to normal.

The event was organised as part of national Refugee Week, which was also celebrated through a screening of critically-acclaimed documentary Journey Beyond Fear, organised by Rural Australians for Refugees Griffith.

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