John Fogarty, former nurse and now St Mary’s House of Welcome CEO. Photo: Christopher Hopkins
At each annual ANMF (Vic Branch) delegates conference we welcome a public charity to present to the delegates in attendance. In 2026, this was St Mary’s House of Welcome – a specialist access service for people experiencing homelessness.
Established in Fitzroy in 1960 by the Daughters of Charity, it originally provided sandwiches to men ‘who were hungry and going without food’, former nurse and now St Mary’s House of Welcome CEO John Fogarty said.
‘They started by opening up their side door and offering these men a cup of tea and a sandwich. The Daughters would say there’s nothing that can’t be started to be solved if you start with a cup of tea, a sandwich and a conversation – and that pretty much still describes how we work.’
Who is St Mary’s House of Welcome for?
Today, St Mary’s House of Welcome opens its doors to all comers, regardless of gender, background or religion. ‘It is for anyone experiencing homelessness, at risk of homelessness, and those who are seeking social inclusion,’ John explained.
‘We welcome people from all walks of life who have fallen on hard times, who may be suffering from mental health issues, addiction issues or a combination of both. Around 40 per cent have experienced domestic or family violence. They have suffered trauma, they’ve been institutionalised, they’ve experienced great poverty, they’ve been victims of scams, they’ve been ripped off by ruthless employers or ruthless people in their lives, and they really just want to see a friendly face.
‘I’m sure you see many of them in the healthcare system as well.’
What does St Mary’s House of Welcome provide?
With a stated purpose to ‘stand with Melbourne’s most vulnerable, listening deeply, welcoming with dignity and creating connections that transform lives,’ St Mary’s House of Welcome’s key offering is daily sit-down breakfasts and lunches. John emphasised the sit-down aspect: ‘It’s not a cafeteria-type approach. We sit people down, we have conversations, we treat them with dignity.’
Last year they served 50,000 meals. This year it’s estimated to be about 55,000.
They also offer hot showers, laundry facilities, phone charging and essential supplies, and serve as a secure and confidential mail collection site for people with no fixed address. They run activities and programmes including cooking classes, art classes and a choir.
Mental health and immunisation services regularly attend to provide outreach care, and the Australian College of Optometry Foundation attend once a month to do eye checks and provide cheap glasses. Services Australia comes in to help people access their Centrelink entitlements. And weekly community nursing visits are a mainstay.
‘We’re very interconnected into the community around Fitzroy,’ John noted. ‘We recently pitched in to help save the cohealth GP services because the people who use our service can’t pay for medical care. If there’s no bulk building service around, they just won’t go. They won’t go and wait in emergency departments; they just won’t see anyone, and that will have a detrimental impact.’
Who runs St Mary’s House of Welcome?
St Mary’s House of Welcome remains a service of the Daughters of Charity but is no longer run by them. Where it was originally staffed in the 1960s by nuns and volunteers, today it has a small staff including support workers and chefs. And plenty of volunteers still, including its board.
‘Our team of community support workers provide support, start the conversations, and try to help people get into accommodation, short term or long term. And for a pretty small service, we punch well above our weight in that we do seem to have really good outcomes in getting people into a better place.’
Fifty-three per cent of their funds come from the government, ‘and they are very clear that that’s for the people on the ground,’ John said. ‘They don’t fund anything we do in terms of the food or the showers or the laundry or any activities that we run. That is covered by the almost 50 per cent of our money that is donated.’
They also actively participate in the food recycling and food reuse network with various providers. ‘And we’re very happy to receive gifts in kind. That’s how we make ends meet.’
