Eurobodalla's 2024 Local Heroes help from the heart

Jan Frikken and Maricel (Cel) Ceniza share a passion. They won the Eurobodalla’s Local Hero Award at the annual Mayor’s Charity Ball on 1 November because of their work helping people from all walks of life through the Eurobodalla Multicultural Group.

In addition to helping immigrants settle into living in the shire, they organise various community activities to promote cultural diversity. They also facilitate Caring Corner for community members to donate and to provide emergency food relief to people in need.

By the time Ms Frikken opened her Batemans Bay shop, JJJ Oriental Supermarket, in 2016, she had been helping migrants in Singapore, Malaysia and then the Shoalhaven for 20 years through her professional capacity.

Ms Ceniza, originally from the Philippines, moved to Australia in 2012 and spent her first year volunteering for Meals on Wheels.

She met Thailand-born Ms Frikken in 2016 in Batemans Bay. “I told Jan I didn’t know of any multicultural support in the shire and Jan asked me if I wanted to start it.”

That was the beginning of the Eurobodalla Multicultural Group, formed by Ms Frikken, Ms Ceniza, along with May Smith and Merty Chen from Indonesia, in 2017.

Ms Frikken said the heart of what they did often began with her shop.

“Because I have worked in the sector so long and have a lot of experience working with migrants and refugees, when I see people, I have answers ready in my head and know the people and services to refer them to,” she said.

Ms Frikken sprang into action when the Black Summer bushfires hit Long Beach.

She worked with the South Coast Community Support Group, responding to the initial bushfire in November. She coordinated the support between members of the community, and coordinated collection and distribution of donations from her shop.

“We started the support before any group, and when the government services came in, we worked with them.”

From her experience of a bushfire on her property in Nowra in 2003, she knew what was coming. She knew people would need cooked food, water, generators, fuel and information because the power outages meant there would be no internet or communications.

“We had two local women who evacuated to Canberra feeding information to our group,” Ms Frikken said. “That is when I started to feel at home in the shire.”

Ms Frikken said her shop is more like a neighbourhood centre for the whole community.

Many community activities and groups started from there, including English classes, Diversity Night, Harmony Day, Caring Corner Open House, Eurobodalla Multicultural Group, South Coast Community Support Group, Batemans Bay Dinner Group and Coffee Morning, and International Women’s Day. It is also home to the Caring Corner.

“In addition to the activities of Eurobodalla Multicultural Group, guest speaking and advocacy meetings with me, Cel has put in a lot of time, energy and personal expenses cooking for many homeless people who access Caring Corner,” Ms Frikken said. “Cel is my true hero who many people don’t know about.”

That is what makes the Eurobodalla Local Hero Award so special to Ms Frikken.

“I have won a lot of awards in my life but all those awards are through working with other people, so I always felt guilty,” Ms Frikken said. “So, this award is the best award.”

Ms Cezina said just to see her name as a finalist alongside Ms Frikken’s lifted her heart.

It took a while for it to sink in that she had won the award with her friend.

“We don’t expect anything in return. We have no agenda and we didn’t expect this award,” she said. “When I help, I help from my heart.”

Ms Frikken said everything they did was to promote diversity and inclusion, adding that they planned on a future Batemans Bay Community Hub.