Orana has seen lots of change over the years – as our community has grown; 
as our services have evolved; as government requirements have become more complex. But one thing hasn’t changed – Orana still has the church’s mission 
at its heart. We remain true to the vision and hard work of our founding congregation members.

Orana is unique. We have a full-time chaplain and we remain a key part of the Lutheran church and celebrate our Lutheran identity. We are committed to providing quality services to the aged and frail people of the South Burnett. 
This was all part of the original vision for Orana.

It’s great to be able to work for a highly professional and compassionate 
not-for-profit organisation in my home town – and give back to the community that raised me. We’re here to serve people and support our community. Orana is a large employer in the South Burnett. We offer a wide range of roles across the site and many people have moved to the South Burnett to take up employment with Orana.

We prepare all meals fresh onsite and do all our own laundry and cleaning. 
We also have our own gardener who delights in making the gardens beautiful for the residents, who he knows by name. We haven’t contracted these services out. This personalises our service and enables us to provide rewarding and meaningful employment for people in the community.

We provide local schools and TAFE colleges with work experience, traineeships and placements and we engage with school students to maintain community connections for our residents. In so many ways, Orana is still the caring home away from home that our founders dreamt of.

Orana began with my mother’s dream. Joyce loved working with the elderly and wanted to create a caring home away from home for local people when they got older. We’re so proud of what our parents created. Joyce and Norman were naturally welcoming, caring and generous people. They worked so hard to gather the people and raise the money to get Orana up and running. They had the encouragement of the local doctors who saw great value for the community in creating a ‘rest home’.

They lived and breathed Orana. Their work was a labour of love. Their rewards were the friendships they developed. Joyce served as the first Committee Secretary and Orana’s first Matron. Norman was the first Committee Member and Orana’s first Caretaker. When Orana opened, they worked for no pay for the first six months. Norman made gardens for the residents and invited them to help him with the gardening—a tradition that continues to this day.

Orana was a family affair. My younger sister Narelle baked cakes for the residents and staff—they particularly loved her cupcakes with a cherry on top. My brothers helped Dad with the maintenance. Norman had a green Morris Minor he called ‘Billy’— it too was part and parcel of Orana!

In the early days, Orana residents were supplied with homemade biscuits baked by members of the Lutheran Ladies’ Guilds. They were on a roster to make a month’s supply. The biscuits had to be nutritious and of good keeping quality. Anzacs, jam drops and gingernuts were just a few of the chosen varieties. Unreturnable containers were to be used, so the ladies packaged their biscuits in shoe boxes, shirt boxes or cornflakes boxes.

When I was a member of St Andrew’s Lutheran congregation at Cooyar, I remember delivering the goodies to Orana in wet weather. Pathways were still under construction and there were wooden planks to walk on. I had difficulty finding reception. Eventually I noticed an open door where I found Mrs Godbold ironing and Mrs Frehmann working on items of clothing or linen. These helpful ladies (volunteers and members of Bethany Lutheran Church) took delivery of the cartons of biscuits and said they would get them to the kitchen.

I’ve always been involved with Orana. We’ve had family living at Orana since the early days – grandparents, parents, aunties and uncles. I worked full-time as a teacher for more than 50 years, but for many years I was volunteering and visiting Orana every week. Any spare time you had, you volunteered for Orana.

Orana did catering and held food stalls to raise money. For many years, Orana was the only caterer in town. We’d cater for weddings, birthdays, events, conventions, you name it. A lot of my friends helped also. There was a team of us who would help with the preparations, service and tidying up. You’d just turn up and help however you could. We always wore white clothes and were careful to serve from the left and clear from the right! My husband Barry and I held hamburger stands at the Kingaroy Show and speedway. Some days we could work from dawn until after midnight. One day we took $5000! We did volunteering work for Orana for around 10 years.

After the Chapel was built in the mid 80s, I enjoyed worshipping with the residents and participating on the organist roster at Sunday evening services. My father Bill Frehmann worked as groundsman and gardener for five years after ‘retiring’ – or before he officially retired and moved to Orana. Dad had as much to do with the place as I did. He planted the avocado trees. Local farmers would take fresh produce or knock off early so they could go and do work for Orana. Residents often liked to help in the kitchen or gardens, and the involvement was encouraged. My grandmother Millie Truss loved to help with the cooking. I have a beautiful photo of Millie and the Orana dog, Sonny. Our son Mark loved visiting Orana. The oldies were so happy to see him – they’d give him pocket money!
We had a lot to do with Orana. Lots of people did. It was part of your community – part of your life.

As a Former Board Member and Chair of Orana, and Councillor and Mayor for the South Burnett, I am proud to have played a part in Orana’s history, and I am grateful for the part Orana has played for our region. I appreciate the vital role Orana plays for individuals and families in our community. My father called Orana home for 21 years.

Orana has always enjoyed enthusiastic community support, strong governance and diligent stewardship. This is demonstrated by its longstanding reputation and its robust relationships with government and the aged care sector.
It took many hands to build the Orana we know today, and it takes many more to continue to deliver Orana’s signature service and care. While it’s one thing to build the structure, it takes compassion, dedication and professionalism to deliver the service and care that make Orana the special place it is.

So many people helped to build and shape Orana, and Orana has come to mean so much to so many – from the faith and vision of the founding pioneers, to the continuing stewardship of Lutheran Services today; from a humble and homely hostel in the 1970s, to a diverse provider of aged care, retirement living and home support today.

Orana is a valued service and care provider, a major employer, a popular workplace and a great advocate for the aged care sector. I am delighted to see Orana continuing to grow and prosper today, providing such valuable service to our community.

We have found that there is a need for an old peoples’ home in our area. We feel that the Lutherans of the South Burnett could and maybe should take the initiative and erect such a home. We are a strong group in this area and we owe something to our community. We would like to set up a Lutheran Old Folks Home for the convenience of the whole community. Through the devotional life of the home, we may be able to give more than a home to those who would want to come.

In 1967, a momentous meeting of the Kingaroy Lutheran Parish took place at which a Lutheran home for the aged was discussed. A committee was formed – Eldred Lange as Chairman, Joyce Kucks as Secretary (it was her brainchild originally) and myself as Treasurer. The challenge was to raise enough money for the project. Various schemes were discussed and we settled on catering for functions and hamburger stalls at the speedway and show.

Orana will be a particularly happy place for many people because it will mean that folks may spend their eventide years in the lovely countryside where they have lived and worked, handy to their relations and friends. Orana plans to offer a private room for each individual – married couples will have double rooms – large enough for comfort and small enough for convenience. A private shower and toilet will surely be appreciated. Space is to be provide on the northern side for a small garden for each guest. There will be a wonderful opportunity for fellowship in the dining room and lounge. Many things are being taken into account to offer real comfort and convenience to guests. It should be a real home away from home.

When catering for weddings, one had to get the meats to individual homes to be cooked. Other ladies would prepare vegetables or make sweets. I often found myself climbing the orange tree at 9 at night! The biggest wedding I catered for was in Kumbia Hall with 300 guests. We fused the electricity with all the cooking. We started at 6am and finished at 4am. Although much hard work, long days and late nights occurred, I often thank God for the blessings which arose from this service to the community. Many lifelong friendships were enjoyed and Orana benefited financially.

Fortunately, we had a list of voluntary helpers of some 50 people who were willing work in various areas and at various times. Our menus always consisted of home-made food, such as trifles, puddings, fruit salad, tarts and cakes. I knew the ladies who were willing to make them to perfection. Many and varied were the functions catered for. To all these people who helped us in any way, may we sincerely thank you for your help.

I was involved with Orana since its grassroots days, when the area was first surveyed from a cow paddock, and in the building of many of the cottages. I had the honour of building the chapel in the 1980s, which I regard as one of my greatest achievements. It was always a pleasure to work with the committees involved. Their voluntary work, particularly with the retaining walls, will always be a feature of the complex. It was a privilege to work with the Orana staff – their consideration for those in their care has earned my deepest respect and love. Orana will always be one of my fondest memories of my building career.

I am thankful to the committees that preceded me and those who took on the role with sleeves rolled up, ready to apply considerable effort toward fundraising, development, catering, landscaping and beautification projects. Those earlier committees were a unique and dedicated group of people who applied a wide range of skills necessary for the time. They were not afraid of hard physical work. They could see that their efforts were contributing to their vision: ‘our home – Orana’. They did not do it for glory or recognition, rather an expression of what God meant to them. Helping to build Orana was a reflection of God at work through them.

Orana is a great home. It is special to those who live here. It has a beautiful location overlooking the town of Kingaroy and extending out to the Bunya Mountains. It invites a happy atmosphere.

Orana is now a significant community entity. The lives of many people are affected by Orana. One of our most important aims is the holistic care of the resident. No matter how we are affected personally, it is the care of the resident that really matters.

My time on the Orana Committee has helped me with my personal growth. I have had the opportunity to observe and work with very dedicated and professional staff. But the most fulfilling aspect is getting to know and interact with the residents. What a wealth of knowledge and history is available from our elderly relatives and friends.

Time is more than the space between the beginning and the end. Time is really about events, people, relationships, experiences, responsibilities, joys, sorrows – about life. Christ said, ‘I have come that you may have life and have it abundantly.’ That applies to the residents too. As staff, we are seeking to allow Christ to do that through us as we seek to enable life – physically, mentally, socially, emotionally and spiritually – to be as abundant as it can be for each individual resident. Orana is a good place to live!