Karinya House for Mothers & Babies

Every woman who is pregnant or has a new baby should be surrounded with the support she needs during this important time. However, not every woman has shelter, stability or support. Some may be at risk of violence, experience homelessness or be completely isolated. For over 22 years, Karinya House has provided immediate support for women who are pregnant or have new babies and have nowhere else to turn.

We provide individualised casework support, safe housing, support during pregnancy and birth and connections to health, welfare, legal, educational and financial services. Karinya House for Mothers and Babies is a community based, grass roots, local organisation, supporting women in Canberra and the surrounding Region, who are pregnant or early parenting and in crisis. 

Women who are pregnant or parenting new borns

Executive Officer – Belinda Munn

Senior Caseworker – Ana Moran

Senior Caseworker – Catherine O’Halloran

Senior Caseworker/Property Manager – Luisa Lopes

Senior Health Professional – Anne Brown

Finance & Business Manager – Jo Saccasan

President: Sarah Kelly

Vice-President: Cassandra Keller

Treasurer: Kathleen Buckley

Secretary: Rosemary Lee

Public Officer/Committe Member: Margaret O’Donovan

Commitee Member: Dave Burnet

Committee Member: Esther Bogaart

Committee Member: John Lewis

Commitee Member: Marie-Louise Corkhill

Making a bequest 

Thank you for considering making this long-lasting contribution to Karinya House. Your legacy will support women who are pregnant or parenting new borns.

When preparing a Will, it is advisable to seek qualified legal advice to ensure you achieve all you wish for your family and others, through your Will. Solicitors, Lawyers, estate planners or trust companies are best placed to provide advice on how to represent your wishes for leaving gifts to family, friends and charities. 

You may wish to advise Karinya House that you are leaving a bequest gift or explore how a bequest gift can help Karinya House achieve its vision. 

Wording for your Will 

If you do decide to leave a gift to Karinya House in your Will, here are some suggestions for wording: 

I give devise and bequeath (ie. cash, shares, real estate etc), 

Or 

I devise to give and bequeath……….percent of the value of my entire estate, 

Or 

I devise and bequeath [the remaining balance], [………. percentage of the remaining balance] of my estate (after all of the specified requests in my Will have been honoured) to Karinya House Home for Mothers & Babies Inc.,  Australian Capital Territory,  for its general purposes and benefit absolutely, and I declare that the receipt of bequest by the Executive Director and/or Committee Treasurer for Karinya House shall be a full and sufficient discharge to my Executor or trustee for the transfer or payment of any property or monies under this clause of my Will. 

Every woman who is pregnant or has a new baby should be surrounded with the support she needs. One of the main supports is time. Karinya House invests time to support each individual woman we walk alongside. 

In resource-rich countries such as Australia, homeless families, more often than not headed by women, are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population. Families who are experiencing a period of homelessness, often have experienced a life marked by violence, trauma and isolation. Experiences that time, space, compassion and a sense of family and connection can begin to address.

At Karinya House we know that if we invest early and work with a family experiencing structural inequalities over the long term, the lives of women and children can be profoundly impacted, and life trajectories changed.

Australian research has indicated that the following are critical in providing specialist services to the women and children Karinya House walks alongside:

• Allowing a woman to stay with Karinya House for as long as is needed.
• Intensive support and advocacy by professionals, including a health professional, who understands how homelessness and violence impacts of pregnancy and early parenting.
• Supporting women and their babies through and beyond a period of homelessness, ensuring housing has every opportunity to remain stable and safe.
• Working closely with other agencies within the community, health, housing and education sectors, providing holistic care, without duplication.
• Peer support.

At Karinya House, we are privileged to journey with women and children in a very profound way and personally share part of their lives for a while. We are able to do this because of our unique funding framework, a collaborative partnership of government, corporate and community funding. This means that we can provide the time and presence of caseworkers and health professionals.

Intensive space and time, focused on being with an individual for the long term, in whatever way they need, to build a brighter future.

The cost of providing an individual woman with a tailored, comprehensive continuum of care, is in human relationships and connections.  

Join us on this journey. Your donation can give the gift of time, space, hope and new horizons.

You can make a donation here: 

http://bit.ly/friendofkarinya

The funding framework for Karinya House is a true collaboration of funding from individuals, families, community groups, Corporates, Philanthropic bodies and Government Partners.  We consider the holistic nature of our funding base represents a tangible expression of recognition, with respect, of the women we are privileged to walk alongside. This expression is valued by Karinya House because “mothers who are single, or homeless and face limited opportunities are never far from judgement, criticism and at times incredible prejudice in our community”.…even today. (Marie-Louise Corkhill, Executive Director, Karinya House for Mothers and Babies, on acceptance of the 2017 ACT Woman of the Year Award). 

Karinya House is proud to recognise corporate, philanthropic and community partners who wish to embrace Karinya House and the women, children and families in our care as part of their corporate and community responsibilities.

Karinya’s corporate sponsorship model is based on the financial and/or pro bono contributions being made per annum by a particular corporate or community partner.

We value the social enterprise model where financial support of Karinya House is linked to a percentage of business sales or profits, adding value to your business model.

We will work with you to determine the basis of our partnership and we will seek to publicly acknowledge and thank our partners for the valuable support they provide.

If you are interested in partnering with Karinya House, please forward your Expression of Interest to jo.saccasan@karinyahouse.asn.au

The Karinya Committee recognise all employees of Karinya House (Staff and Volunteers) are our most valuable organisation asset. Karinya House services are people intense. It should also be noted that all Committee Members apart from the Executive Director, are Volunters. 

Expressions of Interest for employment are welcome by email to info@karinyahouse.asn.au

We recommend a covering email and your current CV be submitted.

Vacancies at Karinya House are dependent upon staff movement and available funding.  Staff turnover at Karinya House is minimal. 

The Karinya Committee recognise all employees of Karinya House (Staff and Volunteers) are our most valuable organisation asset. Karinya House services are people intense. It should also be noted that all Committee Members apart from the Executive Director, are Volunters. 

Expressions of Interest in volunteering at Karinya Hosue are welcome by email to info@karinyahouse.asn.au

We recommend a covering email and your current CV be submitted.

Volunteer intakes are generally assessed every six months or on an as needs basis.