A little golden caravan is acting as a beacon for Page residents, attracting anyone seeking connection, conversation and a good brew.

Mums and bubs, remote workers, and of course, the elderly residents of the Villaggio Sant’ Antonio retirement community all converge at this slow-paced coffee shop, where lingering in line or joining a neighbouring table is encouraged.

The Little Italy Village Cafe is a community-building initiative of Villaggio Sant’ Antonio.

It’s also Page’s only cafe – making it an immediate hit, with over 400 coffees brewed at its launch earlier this month.

The space is the first to join the Foundation for Social Health’s Third Spaces Network, which aims to tackle loneliness by supporting everyday places for social connection.

Nurturing a village mentality and incidental socialising was very much core to the project, according to Villaggio Sant’ Antonio CEO Giulia Jones.

“The solution to loneliness can be as simple as a 10-minute conversation once a week,” she says.

“It’s actually hugely important to human satisfaction and meaning. You want to be noticed, and you want to be seen.”

And loneliness is not limited by age.

Last year, a University of Canberra study of the ACT Region found that nearly 19 per cent of respondents aged 30 to 49 years old said they often or always feel lonely.

“The blue zones around the world – where people live the longest and report the most satisfying lives – are places where there’s meaningful, incidental intergenerational connection,” says Giulia.

Visiting Little Italy, I find a diverse gathering of young and old – all of whom are keen to say hello.

I met Maggie in line for coffee. She’s energised, arriving with her yoga group, ready to settle in a sun-drenched spot.

Later, Katie swings past our table – she’s the Villa Manager and one of the “real movers” behind the van.

Behind her, Jenny the Villa Committee President pops her head in, but can’t stay today – seemingly, she’s on a mission.

I’m even lucky enough to meet Jake, working his first shift in the van supported through the NDIS. This social enterprise seems like the perfect place for him to flex his already impressive customer service skills.

There’s a comfortable sense of hustle and bustle here, though no one is really in a hurry.

“One of the beautiful things about aged-care is everything is slow,” says Giulia.

“This is a slow-living cafe. There’s no rush. It’s not like most coffee shops. There’s plenty of chairs and tables, and we’re not that commercial that we have to push you out.

“We want people to come and just sit there for as long as they need.”

Over coffee, I sit in conversation with Page resident, Lena Azzapardi – and this is where I feel the impact of the space.

I learn that Lena and her husband Joe left Malta in 1971, arriving on Australian shores with a 12-month-old baby, two pieces of luggage and £100.

She says life in Malta was beautiful, but difficult.

After the death of Joe’s mother, the couple moved into the family home to care for his father and Joe’s brother with Down syndrome. Together, they would walk down the road for a daily swim, or grab a basket to visit the markets, chatting to neighbours along the way.

“I lived there with him for three years, but I couldn’t continue to do it because I was feeding three men on £2 a week!”

Five decades later, Lena now rises early each morning to meet Joe in the dementia ward, where he has been for six months.

Sometimes they walk past the self-contained villas, where Lena says she’s made friends with many residents.

“When you go past, you get about 6 million hellos,” she says.

Occasionally, Joe wants to go to the mall – though that’s a more challenging outing.

Little Italy gives Lena and Joe a new accessible option on their doorstep.

The café also keeps isolation at bay for those who don’t have loved ones dropping by.

“In a facility like this, there’s always about 20 per cent of residents who have zero visitors,” says Giulia.

That’s why every morning around 9 am, the Wellbeing Team chauffeurs residents to Little Italy.

But how do they facilitate this culture for connection?

As a former ACT MLA, Giulia says it’s all in the messaging – and her political skills came in handy in getting the word out.

“All of our advertising is about social connection, so people actually come in here with that in mind.

“I was here last Saturday and noticed a resident and someone from the next door retirement village sitting together at a table. When a young mum came along, one of the residents said ‘Don’t sit by yourself. Come and sit with us’.

“That’s it. That’s the goal. Once you’ve got that happening, you’ve got real connection.”

For me, my 10-minute conversation with Lena changed my whole week.

As a busy Mum and remote worker, I found it surprisingly refreshing to meet someone new in this social space engineered specifically for connection.

And that’s why I’m planning my trip back to Little Italy.

The Little Italy Village Cafe is located at 35 Burkitt Street, Page. It’s open from 7 am to 11 am, seven days a week.

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