Friendly Carers Group

28/08/2026

FRIENDLY CARERS GROUP
MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION

Hi Friendly Carers,

For almost five years, the Friendly Carers Group has been supporting carers through peer support, advocacy, information, referrals, social connection, respite activities and opportunities to come together with other carers who understand the caring journey.

As our group continues to grow, we are now formalising our membership to help us strengthen and develop the group and continue providing meaningful support and opportunities for our carers.

The annual membership and administration fee is now $10. This small fee helps with the administration and running of the group and will include participation in Friendly Carers Group events and activities.

We would appreciate all current carers completing their membership before our next event so we can finalise our membership register.

Membership forms will be sent via WhatsApp. If you are not on our WhatsApp group, please provide your email address so we can send you the membership information and form.

If the Friendly Carers Group has made a positive difference to you, we would really appreciate you taking a moment to leave us a review on our page.

Please leave your review in the Reviews section of our page, rather than on an individual post.

Your feedback helps other carers discover our group and helps us continue to grow.

A special thank you to Manal, Venna and Karen for already taking the time to leave a review. Your support and kind words mean a lot to us.

Thank you to everyone who has supported Friendly Carers over the past five years. We truly appreciate your continued support and look forward to continuing to grow our carer community together.

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

28/08/2026

Friendly Carers Carer Week Lunch

Following the wonderful success of our last Friendly Carers lunch, we’re getting together again to celebrate Carer Week!

We’re also very pleased to have two guest speakers joining us:

Our first speaker will be from Accent Home Care and Tabulam & Templer Homes for the Aged, sharing information about support available to carers and the people they care for.

Our second speaker will be Scott Watson, Vanessa’s husband, who will be talking about the cost-of-living pressures many families are experiencing and sharing some ideas on how we can work towards improving everyday living.

It will be a lovely morning of good food, great company, interesting conversation and, most importantly, celebrating our carers.

Friday, 16 October 2026
11:00am
Lynbrook Community Centre

Places are limited, so please
RSVP as soon as possible.
Let’s come together, enjoy lunch and celebrate the wonderful carers in our Friendly Carers community.

Friendly Carers supporting, connecting, laughing and looking after one another.

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

27/08/2026

REMINDER Music Melodies is back!

Hi Carers & Friends,

Just a friendly reminder about our Music Melodies morning next week!

Tuesday, 1 September
10:00 am
Lynbrook Hotel
Elvis is Back!

Seniors $36.90 | Regular $41.90
Members receive a $5 discount + a free drink!

(Membership is free)

Devonshire tea
Buffet lunch
Live entertainment

This respite event is open to carers, partners and friends, so everyone is welcome!

IMPORTANT: Numbers must be finalised by tomorrow, Friday 28 August.

Please RSVP as soon as possible if you’re coming, so we can finalise our numbers with the venue.

We’d love to see our local carer community joining us, and we’re grateful for the ongoing support of organisations such as and Victoria.

Looking forward to seeing you all for a fun morning of music, friendship and a little bit of Elvis!

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

26/08/2026

Friendly Carers Group Bunnings Workshop!

Hello Friendly Carers!
Apologies for the late reminder!

Who's ready for a morning of creativity, laughter and great company?

Thursday, 27 August
Bunnings Springvale
Start time: 11:00am

This week we're making beautiful Dream Catchers!

Come along and create your own dream catcher while enjoying some well deserved respite, friendship and complementary barrister made coffee with other carers.

No artistic talent is required just bring yourself and your smile!

See you tomorrow.

Marie
Facilitator/ Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

23/08/2026

23/08/2026

Music Melodie’s is back !

Good morning Carers,
Hope everyone has had a great weekend, the weather was amazing.

Come along and join us for another fun filled morning of music, laughter, friendship, and great company.

Tuesday, 1 September
10:00 am
Lynbrook Hotel
550 South Gippsland Highway, Lynbrook VIC 3975

This month’s entertainment:
Elvis is Back!

Cost:
$36.90 seniors
$41.90 regular

($5.00 discount & free drink for members membership is free)

This includes:
Devonshire tea
Buffet lunch
Live music

This respite event is open to carers, partners and friends, so everyone is welcome to come along and enjoy the morning with us!

Whether you enjoy singing along, having a dance, or simply relaxing with a coffee and a chat, we'd love to see you there.

Our Music Melodies mornings are a wonderful opportunity to take a break from your caring role, connect with others who understand, and enjoy some well deserved time for yourself.

If you know another carer who would enjoy some support and companionship, please feel free to invite them along they'll receive a very warm welcome.

Please RSVP as soon as possible so we can confirm numbers.

We look forward to seeing you.

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

22/08/2026

Supporting One of Our Own.

We’re very proud to share something special from one of our Friendly Carers, Jenny Cheshire, who has written and published her own book, Real Life of a Kinship Carer.

Jenny shares her personal journey as a kinship carer, giving an honest insight into the realities of caring for a loved one, the challenges, the love, the exhaustion, navigating the system and the strength it takes to keep going.

It’s a very personal story, and one that I’m sure many carers will relate to in some way.

Jenny has put a lot of herself into telling her story, and we’d love to support her as she shares her book with others.

If you’re a carer, know a carer, or simply want to better understand the world of caring, have a look at Jenny’s story and her book.

You might find it touches your heart or gives you a different perspective on what carers experience every day.

You can find out more about Jenny and purchase her book here:

Jenny Cheshire Real Life of a Kinship

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

Sixteen years. One grandmother. One granddaughter with special needs. This is the heartfelt journey of Jenny Cheshire as she became full-time kinship carer for her beloved granddaughter Bella.

22/08/2026

Hi Carers

We’d Love to Hear From You!

If you’ve enjoyed being part of Friendly Carers, attended one of our events, or simply found friendship, support or connection through our group, we’d love for you to leave us a review.

It’s really easy, just go to the Friendly Carers page and tap on the “Reviews” button.

Your feedback means so much and helps other carers discover Friendly Carers and know that they’re not alone.

Even a few words about your experience can make a real difference.

Thank you for your ongoing support, friendship and encouragement. We truly appreciate every one of you.

Friendly Carers,
supporting, connecting, laughing and looking after one another.

For the review:

Search and click on "friendly carers group".
Then click on "reviews", then press "yes" to recommend.

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Support
Friendly Carers Group

21/08/2026

Friendly Carers Bingo & Lunch

Well… what a day!
Our Friendly Carers Bingo & Lunch was full of laughter, good food, great company and some VERY serious bingo competition! It was so lovely to see our carers relaxing, having fun and enjoying some well-deserved time together.

The food was absolutely delicious and there was certainly plenty of it! A big thank you to Mona's Bakehouse in Dingley, as always, they did an amazing job. And yes, I made the salads myself! I wanted to make sure we had plenty of food for everyone to enjoy.

We had plenty of laughs, lots of fun and, most importantly, a wonderful opportunity for our carers to come together, relax and enjoy some well-deserved time for themselves.

Congratulations to our bingo winners, Krishna and Karen!
And congratulations to Karen, our lucky door prize winner! Talk about a lucky day!

A very special thank you to Chris from the City of Casey for joining us. It was wonderful having you with us, and we really appreciated you taking the time to come along and spend time with our carers.

Rachel, came along to talk about the programs and opportunities available through the City of Casey. It was great to learn more about what’s available to our carers and the wider community.

A huge thank you to Cassie, our wonderful bingo adjudicator, who was not only fantastic at keeping the bingo fair and square, but was also so helpful throughout the day. We couldn’t have done it without you!

Thank you to Venna for taking charge of the raffles and keeping everything running smoothly. It truly was a team effort.

And a very special thank you to Maureen, who blessed our food and gave a beautiful blessing for all our carers.

I should also mention that I was running on a grand total of about TWO HOURS’ SLEEP! So if I looked a little delirious at times, you now know why!
But the amazing energy from our carers kept me going!

Because our carers deserve to be appreciated, everyone went home with a gift from Friendly Carers, a beautiful scarf and a box of chocolates.
Just a small way of saying thank you for everything you do and for all the care you give to others.

A special reminder about the card that came with your gift. On the back, you’ll find a QR code that takes you straight to our Friendly Carers page.

Please keep the card and QR code in your bag you never know when you might meet another carer who could use some support, friendship, information or simply someone who understands.

If you know a carer who may need support, please refer them to our Friendly Carers page. The more carers we can reach, the more people we can support.

And finally, a HUGE thank you to everyone who stayed behind to help clean up and pack everything away. Manal, Lee, Lyn and everyone else who pitched in, your help was so appreciated.

It truly was a team effort, and we couldn’t have done it without everyone pitching in.

And let’s not forget Wally, who worked like a Trojan! Thank you, Wally, for all your hard work behind the scenes.

Thank you to everyone who came along, participated, laughed, played bingo and helped make the day such a special one.

Friendly Carers, supporting, connecting, laughing and looking after one another.
What a wonderful community we have!

If you are not currently a member of our Friendly Carers Group but would like to join, feel free to reach out.

Marie
Facilitator / Peer Suport
Friendly Carers Group

18/08/2026

Hi Carers,

The Lynbrook Community Centre has posted this activity:

Free gentle Pilates session 🌿

Connect, move and take time for yourself! Join us for a relaxing gentle Pilates session focused on movement, wellbeing and connection. 💚

All abilities are welcome, and carers are especially encouraged to attend.

📅 Friday 28 August
⏰ 12.00 pm – 12.45 pm
📍 Lynbrook Community Centre
💲 FREE

✅ Register here: https://www.trybooking.com/DNNGI

Come along, move your body, meet others, and enjoy a gentle break in your day 🌸

Take a break and enjoy a free gentle Pilates session focused on movement, wellbeing and connection. All abilities are welcome, and carers are...