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Katie Woolf spoke with Mates4Mates NT Regional manager Jan Peters · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Oh, we know that.
• 0:01
  Speaker 2: Mates for Mates one of the country's leading charities providing physical, psychological,
• 0:05
  Speaker 2: and social support services to the defense community. They are
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: opening their first veterans' health and well being center of
• 0:14
  Speaker 2: its kind in the Northern Territory and joining us on
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: the line to tell us a little bit more about it.
• 0:19
  Speaker 2: Mates for Mates Northern Territories Regional Manager Jan Peters, good
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: morning to you.
• 0:23
  Speaker 3: Jan, Good morning Katie.
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: You very well.
• 0:28
  Speaker 3: Jan.
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: Is it opening today or did it open yesterday?
• 0:32
  Speaker 3: Yes, it's very exciting. I'm sorry if it's a little
• 0:34
  Speaker 3: bit noisy here, but we've had such a fantastic turn
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: up through our inter opening of our interim center this morning. Look,
• 0:42
  Speaker 3: we've been offering services in the NT for about eight
• 0:45
  Speaker 3: months now, but it's so exciting to actually have a
• 0:47
  Speaker 3: space or veterans and their families can come in and
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: connect with us and connect with our services and other organizations.
• 0:54
  Speaker 3: Like it's really exciting and the mates are really enjoying
• 0:57
  Speaker 3: themselves here this morning.
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: Oh wonderful stuff.
• 1:00
  Speaker 3: Jan.
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Who's able to attend?
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: Yeah, it's open to veterans and the family. You don't
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: need to be a Mate to drop into the center.
• 1:09
  Speaker 3: You can just come on in find out what services
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  Speaker 3: we have available, connect with other services. So ex serving,
• 1:16
  Speaker 3: current serving and family members all welcome at the MATS
• 1:19
  Speaker 3: and Mate's interme Center in Parmason.
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: And so where exactly is the interroim center.
• 1:25
  Speaker 3: We're just off scoid a square just outside the Palmeston
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  Speaker 3: Shopping Center eatery, So it's number eleven Palmerston Circuit.
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: And obviously, like you said, it is interim, so I'm
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: assuming that there is a more permanent one that's going
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: to be set up somewhere too.
• 1:40
  Speaker 3: Yeah, that's right. We're still on track for that. So
• 1:44
  Speaker 3: we're doing to open a bigger permanent center in June
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: twenty twenty two. So the this center that we've got
• 1:50
  Speaker 3: here right now allows us to connect with mates. Now.
• 1:54
  Speaker 3: We've actually got over one hundred on our books already,
• 1:57
  Speaker 3: so the demand was really there, and that's why we
• 1:59
  Speaker 3: thought it was important to open this interim fention now
• 2:03
  Speaker 3: instead of waiting. You know, we're twelve months in advance
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  Speaker 3: instead of waiting for another twelve months. So we'll have
• 2:08
  Speaker 3: this one here now while we continue to work on
• 2:10
  Speaker 3: our permanent center, which is on progress and on schedule
• 2:14
  Speaker 3: and due to open in June twenty twenty two.
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: Oh, that's wonderful to hear, Jan.
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: And have you had plenty of people out there through
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: the doors already this morning?
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: Oh? At the place has been crowded this morning. We're
• 2:25
  Speaker 3: trying to keep our social distancing and we've all checked in,
• 2:28
  Speaker 3: but we've filled out on to go to square toooth.
• 2:30
  Speaker 3: So we're cooking a storm up with pancakes out there
• 2:34
  Speaker 3: and the mate throill having coffee and pancakes and getting
• 2:38
  Speaker 3: to know each other. And it's really lovely to see.
• 2:40
  Speaker 3: I'm so excited about having this space.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: You might tell, Oh, good on you. No, I think
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: it's fantastic.
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: Jan.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: Why is it so important that we do have a
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: facility like this in the territory.
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: I don't think we've ever had anything like this in
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  Speaker 3: the territory before. And we do have a big defense population,
• 2:59
  Speaker 3: both x and current serving and as well as their
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: partners that come along with them. And you know, there's
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: a whole lot range of impacts that veterans and their
• 3:08
  Speaker 3: families experience, whether it's isolation moving to the Northern Territory
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: because it's been posted here with your family, whether it's
• 3:17
  Speaker 3: a PTSD or a physical injury, So it's just important
• 3:22
  Speaker 3: to have a space where veterans can walk in and
• 3:24
  Speaker 3: their families can walk in and find out what services
• 3:27
  Speaker 3: out there. There's a whole range of services, but it's hard.
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: Veterans do find it hard to navigate that space and
• 3:33
  Speaker 3: find out what is there. So having a space, they
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  Speaker 3: can just call in and get all that information at
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  Speaker 3: their fingertips and connect with those service services and remove
• 3:43
  Speaker 3: as many barriers as we can.
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: And so Joan people can just drop in.
• 3:46
  Speaker 2: Obviously, it's open Monday to Friday from eight thirty in
• 3:49
  Speaker 2: the morning until four point thirty in the RVO. If
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: anybody is keen to come out and learn more, they
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: can just come along and walk straight in.
• 3:58
  Speaker 3: Yeah, they can just walk straight in. We have a
• 3:59
  Speaker 3: fan tastic coffee machine and the couches they can come
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: in make for coffee. And I have two fantastic veteran
• 4:06
  Speaker 3: liaison officers, Jack and Chris, both veterans themselves, that will
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: connect with them straight away and make sure they're welcome
• 4:12
  Speaker 3: and what can we do for them. Well, I welcome
• 4:15
  Speaker 3: all veterans and their family to call in, just call
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: in and see us wonderful stuff.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: Jan lovely to speak to you this morning.
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: It sounds like it's busy out there, so we're glad
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: that you could take the time to tell us a
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: little bit more about it.
• 4:28
  Speaker 3: Thank you, Katie and I thank you so much for
• 4:30
  Speaker 3: your support. It's really really appreciated.
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: Thank you, no worries at all. We think the work
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: that you do is well worth supporting. Jan, thank you.
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: That's Mates for Mate's.
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: Northern Territory Regional manager there, Jan Peters and wonderful stuff.
• 4:45
  Speaker 2: As I said, that center is going to be open
• 4:47
  Speaker 2: Monday to Friday, from eight thirty in the morning until
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: four point thirty in the afternoons.