It's been a busy week for Jan Govett, keeper of the Rural Australians for Refugee's welcome scroll.
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"Saturday we unveiled the scroll in Melbourne, then to Canberra for the Refugee Welcome National Forum yesterday,” she said. “Cooma last night, here today, then heading inland to Goulbourn, Yass and Wagga.”
The welcome scroll was unveiled at the Refugee Rally on Friday in Bega's Littleton Gardens. The scroll is on a tour of the whole country, collecting the names and locations of each council with a Refugee Welcome Zone. This is the scroll’s first year, but it already lists 113 locations.
Ms Govett says the scroll shows all Rural Australian for Refugee groups, who are often separated by great distances, they are not alone in their efforts.
"We just want to connect communities to let them know we are in this together," she said. "Many become isolated and think nobody else cares except them, so we wanted a physical representation of everyone involved."
The scroll is expected to travel to each state and territory.
“The original plan was to leave it at Parliament House in Canberra when it was full," Ms Govett said. "But, now it might just continue to tour. Some want it next year for Refugee Week or Harmony Day or a multicultural festival. It's so in demand it might just travel indefinitely."
Its popularity means Ms Govett may need to add a few extra metres to the end of the scroll to include new locations.
"Since we've been travelling others are wanting to join too. If it keeps going like this I'll have to add another section on the bottom,” she said.
While she would really love to keep travelling with the scroll, she’s happy to hear the stories it generates along the way.
"I'd really love to get to somewhere like Townsville, or visit the Tasmanian groups, but the reason we chose a scroll is because it's much easier to courier to every location,” she said.
"It's a chance for councils and advocates to talk about what they are doing, which is the main purpose. I'm just looking forward to following it's future adventures."