With the pain of the coronavirus lockdown raging, many Australian pensioners have expressed concern on how to cope during the self-isolation period.
Yet, an Australian Muslim charity is keen on providing succor to this group of vulnerable people.
The charity, Human Appeal International, has started handing out care packages with essential food items to self-isolating residents who have no one to support them.
As older residents opened doors to find food packages with groceries, many of them broke out in tears.
“It’s quite heartbreaking because most of them never expected something like this would happen. One person yesterday – he was in tears – he was like, who are you?” Ali Kadir, the state manager for Human Appeal South Australia, told Daily Mail Australia.
“Nothing like this has ever happened to me in my life. It’s not right for them to go through this, you know, they’re vulnerable so we have to protect them,” he said.
The care package includes enough food to last a couple two weeks and a single person for three weeks.
Among the recipients in South Australia is pensioner Franciso Fioeretti (pictured) who told 9news he was expecting to simply go without food 
Volunteers are packing and distributing more than 500 care packages across Australia 
Volunteers are packing and distributing more than 500 care packages across Australia 
A group of 80 volunteers is working around the clock in small groups to ensure the organisation can keep up with the booming demand 
Ali Kadir, the state manager for Human Appeal South Australia, told Daily Mail Australia older residents are opening their doors in tears when charity workers arrive with groceries 
Each package contains 2kg of rice, 2kg of sugar, 2kg of plain flour, a large Uncle Toby’s cereal pack, 2kg of oil, 1kg of honey, four packets of pasta, Pasta sauce, long life milk and baked beans
Franciso Fioeretti, a pensioner from South Australia, is one of the recipients of these packages. He told 9News he was expecting to simply go without food.
“I’m very grateful, believe me. Otherwise, we’re not gonna eat. We’re not going to eat this week,” he said.
More Effort Needed
Currently, a group of 80 volunteers is working around the clock to ensure the organization can keep up with the booming demand.
Kadir urged distributors and suppliers to join the initiative so they can continue to support vulnerable Australians
“We really need wholesalers, distributors to support us with this because it’s very challenging to get the stuff and they’re charging an arm and a leg,” he said.
Over 872 thousand confirmed cases of COVID-19 have spanned the globe. The pandemic has also killed more than 43 thousand.
In Australia, there are more than 4862 coronavirus cases, while the country has recorded 21 deaths until today.
Human Appeal was formed in 1991 based on an ‘unfulfilled need of the Australian Muslim Community’ to support people suffering across the globe.
Now, more than 28 years later, the group has offices in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, and Perth, and donations have exceeded $200million.