What are the opening hours?

Monday 9am - 5pm Tuesday 9am - 5pm Wednesday 9am - 5pm Thursday 9am - 5pm Friday 9am - 5pm Saturday 9am - 5pm Sunday 9am - 5pm

Community Friends, 68 Vulture Street, Brisbane (2026)

Community Friends helps people who are homeless and those in need. We are not connected to any religious organisation and receive zero government funds. We give enough groceries and meals to last 3-4 days at our weekly food giveaway at 3pm every Wednesday at Bunyapa Park, West End. We help by giving people food, clothing, shoes, blankets and support. In 2011 we gave away over 5000 meals. In 2012,

we increased that to 25,000 meals. In 2013 we gave away over 50,000 meals. That is a ten fold increase in 3 years. We are losing food suppliers and are facing every increasing demand for our food every week. We never charge any of our clients. We give everything away for free. Please help

Clothing, household goods - 0405366520

www.communityfriends.org.au/donate

We need
a cold storage unit
a new truck
food donation box sponsors
food donation box locations

CEO, Founder and Director:
MarkMcDonnell
[email protected]
Phone : 0418 754 900
Address:
27 Cameron St
Fairfield QLD 4103
Director: Jimmy Fahham
[email protected]
Phone: 0418 452 067
Address:
35/60 Vulture Street,
West End 4101
ABN:
30151650903

03/12/2025

Make This Christmas Brighter: Join Us in Helping Others.

Community Friends warmly invites you to celebrate Christmas Day with us while making the day special for those in need. Each year, we gather at Bunyapa Park in West End to share breakfast and/or lunch, along with companionship, with individuals who might otherwise spend the day alone or in difficult circumstances.

When and Where
• Date: Christmas Day – Thursday 25 December 2025
• Location: 68 Vulture Street, West End , QLD 4101 (Bunyapa Park, corner of Thomas & Vulture Streets)
• No Need to Book.
• Contact: 0418 452 067 (Jimmy) or 0418 754 900 (Mark)

Schedule for Christmas Day
Activity Time
Setting up 6:00 AM
Breakfast 7:30 AM
Lunch 11:30 AM
Packing up 1:30 PM

Stay as long as you want or can. There are no minimum or maximum time commitments.
The day is relaxed and informal, whether you can spare an hour or the whole morning, your presence is welcome.

How You Can Help
• Lend a hand: We always need people to serve meals, chat with our guests and assist with set up and clean up.
• Donate food: Bring hot dishes (above 60 °C), cold items (below 5 °C) or room temperature treats like fruit platters and cakes. Please ensure food is prepared safely.

Let’s come together to create a memorable Christmas for everyone. Your presence, big or small, will make a real difference.

There is no need to register, just turn up on the day. If you know someone who might otherwise be alone on Christmas Day, please invite them along.

Can You Help Us During the Year?

We are looking for a weekday relief driver to assist with our food collections. If you or someone you know can assist, please contact Jimmy on 0418 452 067.

Donations
Financial contributions help us continue to provide meals and support to people in need.

Donations can be made securely at communityfriends.org.au/donate.

Banking Details for Community Friends.
Account Name: Community Friends
Account Number: 21808940
BSB: 124050

At last year’s Christmas Day event, I met a single dad who was struggling to pay the rent and support his young daughter. He told me he hadn’t been looking forward to spending Christmas Day with just the two of them in their small rental. He said it felt isolating, and he didn’t want his daughter to miss out on the joy of Christmas. Attending our community lunch made a real difference. He and his daughter spent the day talking with others, enjoying a festive meal, and feeling part of a larger family. It reminded us all why these gatherings matter so much. Your support helps create moments like this for families who need them most.

“Christmas reveals its truest magic when we come together, turning simple moments into shared joy, warmth, and the feeling of community."
Mark McDonnell

http://www.facebook.com/communityfriendswestend

Community Friends is an independent registered charity and does not receive any government or church funding. Donations of $2.00 or more are tax-deductible in Australia.

28/06/2025

“Susan” was a single mother and had recently fled an unsafe relationship and was now living in temporary accommodation. Susan had no local family support and was relying on limited Centrelink assistance.

She found herself unable to afford enough food for herself and her two young children. She came to our food giveaway. We have 200 people attend our food giveaway in West End every week.

When she arrived, she asked to speak with me, as we had spoken on the phone the previous day. I welcomed her and explained how the food giveaway works. Take what you need (subject to availability), we don’t require proof of ID or Centrelink assistance, and everything is provided free of charge. We don’t judge, we only offer support.

Susan made her way through the food tables. She picked up essential groceries, including meat, fresh fruit, and vegetables, as well as some non-perishable items. We were even able to provide nappies for her youngest child. I spoke with her after she had been through the line. Her eyes welled up with tears. She expressed gratitude and said she was surprised by the kindness and acceptance she received. It was a lifeline, she said.

Susan’s story is just one of many that reflect the importance of Community Friends. For people in crisis, the food giveaway is more than just meeting basic needs. It’s about restoring dignity, offering hope, and reminding people they are not alone.

If you know someone who is struggling to make ends meet, invite them to our food giveaway. It is held every Wednesday at 68 Vulture St, West End 4101 (Bunyapa Park). The food giveaway starts at 3 pm, and many people arrive early. Also, if you would like to see what we do, you are also invited to attend.

As we approach the end of the financial year, please remember that all donations are tax-deductible. We can only offer the services we do because of the generosity of people like you. Community Friends receives no government or church funding — it is public support that keeps us going, week after week.

If you would like to help people like Susan through Community Friends, you can.

Our banking details are –
Account Name: Community Friends
Account Number: 21808940
BSB: 124050

Or you can donate through PayPal via our website.
https://www.communityfriends.org.au/donate/

29/01/2025

IN HIDING ON AUSTRALIA DAY

I have changed a few details about this person’s account of their current situation and personal information to keep their identity safe. The narrative is correct, but this version has de-identified them.

On Saturday, I received a text from ‘Susan’ asking for a food parcel. She said she couldn’t talk on the phone as she had run out of credit and could only text. In one of the texts, she told me she came from a domestic violence situation. When I met her the following day I learned that she ‘escaped’ from her partner two weeks previously. Susan was in a long-term domestic violence relationship. She made her break using an existing appointment to leave her home and her partner.

Susan said she had left him previously but had always returned. She said this time she wasn’t going to make that mistake again.

Jimmy (a Community Friends Director) looks after the food parcels. I gave her Jimmy’s phone number so she could text him and try to arrange for someone to collect the food parcel for her. (We don’t do food deliveries). She texted me throughout the day with various details. Susan informed me at 4 p.m. that she couldn’t reach Jimmy. I said I would fix it up.

I called Jimmy and spoke with him. He had rung her several times that day, but she didn’t answer her phone. Jimmy said he would ring her again when we got off the phone.

I texted Susan again on Sunday morning (Australia Day) to see if Jimmy got through to her. She told me she was ‘hiding’ and didn’t feel confident enough to ring someone she didn’t know or to answer a phone call she didn’t recognise. This now made sense to me why Jimmy couldn’t contact her.

I offered to deliver food to her that day if she could give me a place to meet her. She gave me a place to meet and an hour later I did. I gave Susan a big box of groceries and a bag of frozen food and meat. We talked for 30 minutes, and we both left.

Susan was in her late 20s/early 30s and had no children. She was bruised, timid and thin—not anorexic thin, but when I saw her, I could tell her life had been hard.

We don’t offer people food vouchers—only food parcels. We don’t provide food vouchers for several reasons, and cost is one of the key reasons. Susan returned some of the food I gave her as she couldn’t eat it.

If you would like to help people like Susan through Community Friends, you can.

Our banking details are –
Account Name: Community Friends
Account Number: 21808940
BSB: 124050

Or you can donate through PayPal.
Go to www.communityfriends.org.au/donate

.

11/12/2024

Join Us on Christmas Day and Spread the Joy of Christmas

Community Friends invites you to celebrate Christmas Day with us!

On Christmas Day every year, we open up to the community, especially those who may be alone, struggling or wanting to help others.

Where: 68 Vulture Street, West End 4101 (Bunyapa Park).

When: Christmas Day, December 25, 2024
• Setting up: 6:00 AM
• Breakfast: 7:30 AM
• Lunch: 11:30 AM
• Packing up: 1:30 P.M.

“I Can Only Spare an Hour and a Half on Christmas Day”: Stay as long as you want or can. There are no minimum or maximum time allocations. We want everyone to enjoy the day.

How You Can Help:
• Lend a hand, whether it is serving food, chatting with guests, or setting up and cleaning up.
• Donate Food: Bring hot food (above 60°C), cold food (below 5°C), or room-temperature items like fruit platters and cakes.

Let's come together to create a memorable Christmas for all. Your presence and support, big or small, will make a significant difference.
We would love to see you there—no need to register.

Can you help us?

We are looking for a relief weekday driver. Please contact Jimmy on 0418 452 067 or myself, Mark on 0418 754 900.

Donations can be made at www.communityfriends.org.au/donate.

26/11/2024

Will you help us provide Christmas presents to a child living in poverty?

Would you be surprised to hear that Queensland currently has eight State High Schools specialising in teaching students who typically have or are experiencing homelessness, poverty, mental health issues, and social isolation, to name just a few of their concerns? In 2025, this number will expand to 12 schools.

Community Friends worked with several of these schools this year to provide these children with clothing and hygiene products. But we can do more. With your assistance, we would like to help them with Christmas presents.

The types of presents that often benefit these students are ones they can burn off excess energy or fidget with. These could include skateboards, jumping ropes, flying rings, finger-spinner gyros, and various sports balls such as basketballs, footballs, superballs, etc. If you have any of these at home that are not being used, we would love to pass them on to these students. Antiperspirants would also be helpful. These presents are available from shops like Kmart if you want to buy new presents.

If you would like to donate any of these toys to these students, please arrange a time with Jimmy (on mob. 0418 452 067 or [email protected]) to drop them off or let him know that you have donated money for this.

Our banking details are:
Account Name: Community Friends
Account Number: 21808940
BSB: 124050

OR to make a donation using PayPal, go to www.communityfriends.org.au/donate

WAREHOUSING IS BORING – but it is a fundamental pillar in providing food to people in need.

We are still in crisis with our warehousing and storage issues. We urgently need very affordable warehousing. If you can help, please ring or text me (Mark McDonnell) at 0418 754 900 or ring or email Jimmy at 0418 452 067 or [email protected].

Each week that Community Friends is delayed in having appropriate warehousing means we provide less food to families and people in crisis. We are not providing the regular 3 to 4 days of food every Wednesday that we usually do. These people desperately need food, which we cannot offer due to our inability to store it appropriately.

YOU CAN HELP US, AND IT WON’T COST YOU ANYTHING.

1. Please talk to everyone you know about Community Friends and our urgent need for warehouse space.

2. Please share this post/email as widely as possible. Somebody somewhere has some space we can use OR can make a significant donation that will enable us to buy a warehouse OR can provide us with a favourable loan to purchase a warehouse. All donations are tax-deductible.

We are deeply grateful for your support in this challenging time.

I can be contacted by phone or text. (Mark McDonnell - 0418 754 900)
Jimmy Fahham can be contacted by email at [email protected]
or by telephone on 0418 452 067.

ARE YOU RETIRED OR ON A PENSION? CAN YOU DRIVE A VAN AND OCCASIONALLY BE AVAILABLE TO PICK UP SOME FOOD FROM SUPERMARKETS DURING THE WEEK?

If so, I would love to hear from you. We are looking for a relief volunteer driver to step in and help us as needed occasionally. I can be contacted by phone or text. (Mark McDonnell - 0418 754 900). Jimmy Fahham can be contacted by email at [email protected]
or by telephone on 0418 452 067.

Address

68 Vulture Street
Brisbane, QLD
4101

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm
Saturday	9am - 5pm
Sunday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

+61418754900

Website

http://www.communityfriends.org.au/

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Community Friends