The Oasis Townsville in need of funding security as fight continues
A vital hub providing a lifeline to Diggers leaving the military is hanging on by a thread after funding promises made in the wake of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide have yet to materialise.
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A vital hub providing a lifeline to Diggers leaving the military is hanging on by a thread after funding promises made in the wake of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide have yet to materialise.
Oasis Townsville say it is bunkering down to provide reduced services to the region’s veterans as the organisation holds out hope a cash lifeline will soon be made available.
Since opening its doors four years about the veterans’ hub has provided vital services to 1000s of veterans to make navigate the transition out of the ADF but has now been forced to re-evaluate its services and reduce staff from 16 down to a core of four to keep its doors open.
Oasis Townsville chair Lieutenant General John Caligari said Recommendation 86 of the Royal Commission, which the Federal Government agreed to in principle, calls for national funding of veterans and families hub across the country.
There are 17 Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs emerging around Australia of which only eight are open for business of which the Oasis Townsville is the original and most advanced.
The Oasis Townsville’s award-winning employment program has also been shut down as its State Government grant has finished.
Last year the organisation won two national awards in the 2024 PM’s National Employment Awards and has applied to the State Government for another funding grant to continue the program.
The transition program called NAVIGATOR is funded through the Department of Defence but vital funds had been frozen for the past four months forcing the organisation to lay off staff.
Lieutenant General Caligari said the organisation had not been given any reason for the delay in funding.
“They keep asking for additional information, which we keep providing,” he said.
The Lieutenant General said their goal was to keep the three core programs running at a minimum viable level.
“We’re down to four staff members, so we’ll be doing the best job we can to look after the veteran community our three operations – ‘someone to love, something to do and something to look forward to’ will continue as best it can.
“We are hunkered down to survive and do the best job we can for the veteran community until Recommendation 86 is funded.
“In the meantime, we’re hoping the Queensland Government will come to the party and reinstate the employment program at least.
“The Oasis Townsville has conducted a comprehensive review of our strategy in light of the drawdown over the next few months of the major grants we have been operating under,” he said.
“In the last few months we have briefed Federal and Queensland state politicians and senior public servants on our efforts to bridge the gap until Recommendation 86 is funded.” Lieutenant General Caligari said.
Member for Herbert and former Defence Force Member Phillip Thompson said it was “really disappointing”.
“To say that a grant has been given to the Oasis as well as a Labor election commitment in 2022, to now find that majority of that funding has not been provided and because of that we’ve seen veterans and veteran spouses lose their jobs on the eve of Anzac Day,” he said.
“Townsville is a large defence city, we have the large the most amount of veterans and spouses per capita in the country and we’ve had high rates of mental illness high rates of defence and veteran suicide and a place like the Oasis provides support to the veterans and their families and it is a national shame and a national tragedy and a complete failure.”
Oasis Townsville Executive Leader Angie Barsby said the end of the State Government funded employment program had led to the loss of two employees.
“The organisation has commenced seeking support from community and business groups empathetic to our cause supporting the wellbeing of the veteran community in Townsville,” she said.”
“One way for those organisations to support is to rent space at our Homebase for the veteran community.”
Lieutenant General Caligari said they did not know when Recommendation 86 would receive the much needed funding.
“The Oasis Townsville is not shutting down. We’re going to do the best job we can, to the best extent possible of maintaining the veteran community the support that we’ve been doing within constraints until Recommendation 86 is funded – which is a piece of string,” he said.
Oasis Townsville patron Commanding Officer of 3rd Brigade Brigadier Ben McLennan said the organisation was an extraordinary enterprise, an extraordinary contribution to current serving members, their families and veterans.
“We’re very, very motivated towards ensuring that the service, the extraordinary service, the Oasis provides to our current serving members, families and our veterans, continues,” he said.
The Federal Government was contacted for comment but did not respond before deadline.
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