Thanks a Million: Keeping doors open for the homeless amid crisis

Salvation Army officer Rhonda Clutterbuck and her small team have worked hard to provide essential services to those in need.

Where many doors have closed over the past year as a result of the fallout of coronavirus, Captain Rhonda Clutterbuck has gone above and beyond to make sure her door has remained open to those in need.

Captain Clutterbuck manages The Waterhole in Alice Springs, a drop-in centre funded by the Salvation Army and charitable donations, which offers a place of respite for members of the local community, many of them homeless.

The centre is open for four half days each week offering showers, laundry, teas and coffees, art facilities and living areas to enjoy TV or a movie, and remained so despite border closures, government restrictions and dwindling supplies.

“It’s been full on – there’s myself and three other staff caring for 50-70 people per day: most of us didn’t have a holiday all last year until Christmas,” Captain Clutterbuck said. “Demand outweighed our resources, and we had to modify our practices depending what we could get in town.

Salvation Army officer Rhonda Clutterbuck at The Waterhole in Alice Springs.

“Rubber gloves were hard to come by, and we would have gone close to running out of sanitiser if restrictions hadn’t been eased. We were lucky we could stay open because people still needed somewhere to go.”

The 45-year-old Salvation Army corps officer has been nominated for a Thanks a Million award. “It’s not why I do this job but it’s always nice to be thought of,” she said. “When someone says thank you with a sincere smile, that always goes a long way to lifting my heart.”

Captain Clutterbuck moved to Alice Springs from New South Wales one year ago and has already established relationships with members of the local community.

“We have quite a lot of regulars, a lot of older indigenous peoples,” she says. “They’re very culturally immersed so they sit back and watch you; for most, English is their third or fourth language, so they observe you for months before those barriers start to break down.

“It’s a blessing we were able to stay open during the past year and grow these relationships through that time. That’s where the joy is for me: to be a part of someone’s life.”

To nominate someone and say thanks, go to thanksamillion.net.au and they could receive a $200 Woolworths Gift Card.

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