Our latest news
Life-changing experience
Ever since the horrible Tampa boat ‘incident’ I’d felt quite disempowered about the state of refugees, that is until a chance encounter about 18...
Bunnings BBQ sizzles
Our doughty sausage sizzlers had a great day at the recent Bunnings BBQ in Ballina, raising $1957 – a stunning effort. Meg Pickup said the takings...
Foaad’s special day
By Foaad Makansi One of the most beautiful, elegant and wonderful celebrations ever for you is the one that friends and family organise for you....
Leen catches the singing bug
Young Leen has only been in Australia a year but she’s well and truly caught the performing bug after singing a duet at the sold-out Finding Freedom...
Trivia night helps refugee artists
A fun night of trivia was held at Ocean Shores Country Club on August 24 to help support three Afghan artists who are seeking asylum. Organiser Sara...
Afghan family welcomed
A mother and her five children from Afghanistan have been welcomed to Australia by the Lismore Region Refugee Settlement group. Lismore co-ordinator...
New Ballina group formed
The region’s newest CSG, Ballina Refugee Resettlement and Welcome Network (BRRAWN), has launched, with eight enthusiastic women forming the core...
We’ve got a new name
At our Special General Meeting on June 15, the required 75 per cent of members present voted to change our name from Ballina Region for Refugees to...
Life memberships awarded
Two stalwarts of BR4R, Trish Antoniacomi and Meg Pickup, have been awarded Life Membership for their nine years of service to the...
Freedom concert finale
What a finale to Refugee Week (or month, as it was) when the Mullumbimby Civic Hall brimmed to capacity with standing room only as a sea of voices...
Big day celebrating our community
The Addams Family Musical was a wonderful evening of high-quality musical theatre providing much joy and laughter.
100 Groups in 100 Days project count extended
The nationwide project to create 100 Groups in 100 Days has been a huge success, and the count has been extended to August 31 to get over the line....
Addams Family tops fundraising
The Addams Family Musical was a wonderful evening of high-quality musical theatre providing much joy and laughter.
Call for regular donations
We are encouraging our supporters to consider making a regular (eg monthly) tax-deductible donation to BR4R. While we continue to actively run...
Migrants need better digital services
Migrants and refugees rely heavily on social media platforms like Facebook and messaging platforms such as WhatsApp for communication and...
100 Groups in 100 Days project needs a late rush
Ballina Region for Refugees has joined with the Australian Government in a new refugee settlement campaign, 100 Groups, 100 Days. So far, 64 new...
Special meeting on name change proposal
Ballina Region for Refugees financial members have been invited to a Special General Meeting on June 15 to vote on a proposed new name for the...
Driving to independence
How do you define the successful resettlement of a refugee family? Among the many ways such as succeeding in school and having access to language...
Meet our refugee families at Tintenbar
Would you like to get to know some of our refugee families? Several will be speaking at the Celebrating our BR4R Community event at Tintenbar Hall...
Extraordinary story brought to the screen
A remarkable film documenting one family's flight to freedom from the Taliban will be screened at the Lennox Head Cultural Centre on June 18 at...
Local voices raised for freedom
More than 80 Northern Rivers singers and musicians will come together at 3pm on June 30 to raise the rafters of the Mullumbimby Civic Hall in a...
Film Screening Fundraiser
Lennox Head Cultural Centre will be the venue for the screening of a powerful documentary of an Afghan family's quest for freedom. The screening...
New date for Dead Legends show
It's going to be a huge night on Friday May 10 when Bowie, Elvis, Queen and Aretha will echo through the Tintenbar Hall in The Dead Legends Show....
New name proposed for BR4R
Ballina Region for Refugees financial members have been invited to a Special General Meeting on June 15 to vote on a proposed new name for the...
Call for regular donations
We are encouraging our supporters to consider making a regular (eg monthly) donation to BR4R. While we continue to actively run fundraising...
Acid Bleed jazz in Lismore
The fabulous Gypsy jazz band Acid Bleed is once again supporting Lismore Region Refugee Settlement (LRRS) with a gig at the Lismore City Bowling...
We need 100 Groups in 100 Days
Ballina Region for Refugees has joined with the Australian Government in a new refugee settlement campaign, 100 Groups, 100 Days. The aim is for...
A chance to save two lives
By Russell Eldridge If there is an accountancy firm out there willing to offer a job to a highly qualified Afghan refugee, you may be saving two...
Networking success
The value of networking was fully realised at a recent meeting in Mullumbimby convened by Ballina Region For Refugees and involving representatives...
Volunteer coordinator needed
We are looking for someone to take over as the volunteer coordinator for Northern Rivers for Refugees. Our warm thanks go to Evelina Piga, who has...
Big hearts at Tintenbar Up Front
Peter Lino, left, and his crew of volunteers singing (or not singing) the Tintenbar Up Front welcome song at...
Networking success
The value of networking was fully realised at a recent meeting in Mullumbimby convened by Ballina Region For Refugees and involving representatives...
New CSG in Mullum
Members of MRSG, the new Mullumbimby refugee support group which is hoping to host a family soon. A new Community Support Group (CSG) has formed in...
Everyone deserves a safe place to call home
For more than seven years, there’s been one Sunday every month when two members of Ballina Region for Refugees, Trish Antoniacomi and Meg Pickup,...
Melbourne conference: Let’s work together
BR4R president Marilyn Leeks recently attended a Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP) conference in Melbourne. Here is her...
Six month on, a family update
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
BR4R supports flood recovery
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
It’s the vision thing
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
Donation for PNG refugees
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
Rik gets life
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
Our new publicity team
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
Small acts can define success
An act of friendship from seven-year-old Rahaf over the school holidays shows that successful resettlement can be measured in small ways.
Learning in a digital world
Many new immigrants can struggle not only with language, but learning digital skills. A new program run locally the NSW Health Department is designed to help multilingual families better engage with digital technology.