Konnections blooms in Mornington
21 June 2010
The past seven months has seen a period of great change for Karingal’s newest branch, Konnections.
The organisation spread its wings across the bay in October last year when Disability Opportunities Victoria (DOV) became a branch of Karingal.
Konnections Manager Sonia Berton said while change had brought challenges, there had been many rewarding times in watching Konnections grow.
“Feedback from clients is that they continue to be happy with the programs and very happy and relieved that the service was able to be sustained,” she said.
“The service closing was certainly something they feared.
“Initially, for most people involved, there was a sense of relief when Karingal and DOV merged to form Konnections – but that was also followed by the fear of the unknown.”
Sonia said keeping people informed about the developments at Konnections was key to putting everyone’s mind at ease and they were continuing to improve communication.
“We do need to keep things moving along, but at the same time to consult with relevant parties and stakeholder is of fundamental importance,” she said.
“I think overall people note that the changes have been outstanding and they have seen they have contributed to them.”
Sonia said Konnections was keen to sustain models that worked well previously, including the Client Committee as well as the newsletter.
A new initiative to start soon will be the holding of parent and carer forums, an idea that came about following a recent survey of Konnections’ stakeholders.
“I don’t think you see change like this in such a positive way unless you engage everyone, but ultimately it’s their passion and commitment that has seen it go so smoothly,” Sonia said.
Konnections is likely to open its door the public in October to help celebrate Konnections’ first anniversary.
While the future remains bright, Sonia said the past should be preserved with staff and participants currently working on ways of recording the history of DOV and its time also as Wongabeena.
“It’s about not losing the history and recognising there were certainly really great parts of the history with clients, parents, volunteers and direct care staff.
“We by no means want to lose that.”