Volunteering

A number of Volunteering Courses were completed during Camps and Pathways week including the following:

• Cranbourne Food Truck
• Pakenham Women's Friendship Cafe
• Puffing Billy
• VMCH Berwick Aged Care
• Transit Soup Kitchen
• Wilson Botanic Park
• Volunteering at school

CRANBOURNE FOOD TRUCK

We wish to express our sincere thanks to the staff and students of Nossal High School for your generous donation of cooked meals to Cranbourne Food Truck.

With your support we’re there for people experiencing food insecurity in Cranbourne. We provide a caring presence in the community where it is very much needed.

Thank you for your compassionate response to the growing need experienced by people in our community.

Marie Madziarz

Administrator

Cranbourne Food Truck

PAKENHAM WOMEN'S FRIENDSHIP CAFE

6B Henry Street Pakenham is the Living and Learning Centre. This space includes a fresh vegetable stall, a free food pantry, a bike repair hub, a men's shed, a centre for adult learning, and a lounge called the Women's Friendship Cafe, a safe, welcoming environment where all women can relax, make friends, share experiences, learn new ideas and skills, and find pathways to connect to services. 

For the past eight years, community service provider Jolene has run the Thursday morning sessions from 9am-12pm. Initially inspired to reduce loneliness, the cafe now has a range of volunteers and visitors from refugee backgrounds, disability groups, and vulnerable members of the community. 

On Friday 21 March they celebrated Harmony Day with a spread of cuisine from around the world. Siddhi also brought some delicious chocolate brownies that she had baked herself. The ladies wore a touch of orange, and 19 year 11 students and Ms Tchantcho attended to show students what volunteering can be like. 

During the day we spoke with the women, sang songs together, played music for them, ate food and laughed. Several students, and women were fasting for Ramadan, which started a beautiful conversation about spirituality, mindfulness and giving. 

Volunteering at the female refugee cafe community was an eye-opening experience that really changed how we see community service. We got to talk to some of the refugees and their stories about their lives was truly inspiring. 

One of the women told us about how she started volunteering years ago and how it gave her a sense of purpose. Hearing her story made us think about how much small acts of kindness can really impact people’s lives. The best part was seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces while we sang old tunes in a harmonious community, knowing that even small efforts can make a difference. 

By the end of the day, we left feeling accomplished, grateful, and more connected to our community than ever. Thank you to Yunaizah, Siddhi, and Pertya for playing their instruments, and to Ms Tchantcho and Aminah for singing for the ladies. It really brightened their day and reminded us of all of the power of giving using our talents to make the world a better place. 

By Ria Cherayath

PUFFING BILLY

VMCH BERWICK AGED CARE

As part of Camps and Pathways Week, Year 10 students had the rewarding experience of volunteering at VMCH Berwick Aged Care Residence. 

Feeling welcomed by the residents’ warm smiles, we spent time listening to their interesting life stories and learned that they came from all walks of life: from scientists to fashion designers and classical dancers. 

We were grateful to have a therapy dog (Tootsie!) join us. The dog immediately made the residents' eyes light up, cuddling up to anyone who needed extra love, bringing joy and comfort to all of us. 

One of the most valuable lessons we took away from this experience was that while our physical bodies may age, our minds and souls remain just as young showing us that age does not define who we are. Hearing their stories made me realise that one day, I’d love to have my own tales to share with future generations too. 

By Sharon Paulson 

VMCH Berwick Aged Care Response

My team and I could not have asked for better participants!

Your students and their teachers, Ian and Michelle were fully committed to immersing themselves into the experience and enjoying their time getting to know some of Berwick’s wonderful residents through shared activities.

They were all wonderful ambassadors for Nossal High School! We wish all the students every success in their future.

Warmest Regards,

Anita Ross

Lifestyle Coordinator

VMCH Berwick Aged Care

TRANSIT SOUP KITCHEN

WILSON BOTANIC PARK

As a Year 11 Nossal student I had the opportunity to volunteer alongside my peers at Wilson Botanic park through the Citizen Science stream where we were fortunate enough to learn about the key issues that surround our society today such as Climate change, environmental damage and evolution of new species. 

We were able to explore the park, and research using a key tool provided to us called Inaturalist app that provided us with the essential information about certain species of plants and how native plants have been sustained and proven useful in supporting the Australian populations and catering to their needs, however due to the rising temperatures the once abundant native plants have plummeted significantly in number. 

Alongside that we all learned about introduced species and plants that have either proven beneficial to our community and helped with sustainability or have become hazardous to our population impacting many of the wildlife creatures and the ecosystem. 

In our groups we were able to explore the wonders of the park and cherish the beauty that resided within, and we all left with a bag full of knowledge and understanding but more so a drive to contribute to our society and do our best in helping to resolve many of issues that are prevalent not just around the climate but other domains as well.

By Ananya Syal

VOLUNTEERING AT SCHOOL

I think one of the great qualities that Nossal students have is ambition, but sometimes, that ambition clouds our ability to think in terms of next steps. Regardless of what we want to be, we all have to start out small. Volunteering may not be the flashiest part of Pathways week, but it still gets us ready for working life. It makes us appreciate the so-called menial tasks that actually offer a lot of insight into our work ethic. 

When the job isn’t too specialised, it really is your outlook that distinguishes you. Whether you worsen or brighten people’s days.

By Zubair Ahmed