Our Amazing Volunteers

Saltbush Beach Balnarring

This year, Saltbush has had the pleasure of engaging with a variety of schools to collaborate on community service projects on site at Balnarring Beach. Students across Years 11 and 12 VCE and VCAL from Marian College Sunshine West, Clonard College, St Joseph’s College Echuca, and Star of the Sea College have all participated. These groups of students and teachers stay at Saltbush while completing projects that have been designated based on the goals and objectives of the group. 

For VCAL students at Marian College and St Joseph’s College, tasks were designed in partnership with the students based on their skillsets and the skills they would like to learn, and included furniture painting, mulching and gardening, window and deck cleaning, and wall rendering. It is so helpful for Saltbush to be able to engage with schools for these tasks, as we often rely on community service and volunteers to achieve site-related projects.

Star of the Sea’s Ave House contributed to Saltbush’s community project, The Flock. This project involved the local Men’s Shed and Saltbush Artist in Residence Kate Gorringe-Smith to create and underpaint wooden shorebird silhouettes, before the students of Ave House painted the birds in creative ways to be situated on site at Saltbush. This was an excellent opportunity for the students to be involved in something that incorporated the work of other groups and volunteers, in true community project fashion. 

As an alternative, Clonard College in Geelong did not attend Saltbush, but instead engaged with us in a long-term project. Students presented project ideas, received feedback from Saltbush, attended a virtual site tour, and created their projects at school. These projects – including outdoor book boxes, vertical herb gardens, and outdoor game sets – were then brought down by Clonard staff members to be installed, along with the teaching staff completing other tasks around the houses and gardens. This type of community service was a great way for students to have creative licence and responsibility, while providing wonderful projects that improve the Saltbush site and help make guest experiences more enjoyable. 

By choosing Saltbush as a place to hold school camps and community service activities, especially during the off-peak winter months, schools are supporting Saltbush through booking our accommodation and making positive changes to the site for future guests experiencing hardship. Saltbush has availability between May and November 2023 for school groups looking to participate in community service. We would love for schools to get in touch through emailing Saltbush at info@saltbushbb.org.au.

Cassie Mills 

Saltbush, Balnarring Beach

Brigidine Asylum Seeker Project (BASP)

Volunteers are an essential part of BASP, expanding the scale and scope of what we can offer to support people seeking asylum.

BASP has 150 volunteers listed, with around 100 being active at any one time.

People are generally matched with an asylum seeker family or individual according to interests, availability and proximity to each other as most visits are at the asylum seeker’s home.

Some volunteers have been visiting families since 2014 when they started to assist with learning English. For many of these, they have become friends, sharing in each other’s celebrations and the ups and downs of life.

Many are matched for friendship/ companionship and then their own unique interactions develop. One helped a single man to develop a wonderful herb and vegetable garden. Another used Zoom to teach English to a man through COVID getting him to the level of doing a Certificate III and gaining work.

The stories of these relationships are heart-warming. The volunteers are the eyes and ears of BASP- contacting the coordinators when issues or concerns arise or seeking advice on how to proceed.

Some volunteers have specific tasks.

We have been able to set up and furnish so many houses because of one or two volunteers who have collected donated furniture and then taken it to those in need. One man has done this for years, at times taking an asylum seeker to assist and thereby giving them ‘work experience' and a wonderful introduction to Aussie life.

Another has helped by inspecting rental properties, helping with applications and completing condition reports on behalf of BASP as well as individual asylum seekers. Another is a pro-bono migration agent, helping with the most complex of cases.

A small band of others deliver food to vulnerable people in their homes each week or fortnight.

Noelle, has managed the donation of groceries, kitchenware and bed linen for 15 years. This means coping with times of feast and famine in donations, organising the pantry and using every nook available at our office. She prepares the grocery bags for delivery, taking into account the needs of each family.

Why does Noelle do this? She believes we can feel overwhelmed and powerless to respond to endless reports of people in need in our world. Being engaged in doing something practical is satisfying and can make a big difference to some people. Noelle has enjoyed meeting asylum seekers and refugees and just wishes more people could have contact with them and hear their stories.

Noelle retires at the end of 2022, leaving 2 other volunteers to take over and keep up the essential work she has undertaken for so long. 

How fortunate BASP is to have people like Noelle volunteering - so capable, compassionate and creative in supporting people seeking asylum.

Libby Saunders 

BASP Co-ordinator

Wellsprings for Women

Childminding is often considered as minding a child or children but it is more than just sitting by children.

Childminding is the skills that volunteers share with the children. The different experiences they have, the practices they apply, or the related education they have are all shared.

Wellsprings for Women is the place where women’s lives take shape. Volunteers help the mothers to learn, gain confidence, choose career path and give meaning to their lives.

Volunteers coordinate and lead the delivery and development of many important activities for children. These activities provide opportunities to develop and learn social, cognitive and motor skills. They also strengthen the interaction between mothers and their pre-school children through music, songs, stories, and craft activities. They ensure children are safe and the program is delivered in a clean and welcoming environment. Volunteers encourage and support mothers in building strategies to interact positively with their children. 

There are currently 15 volunteers working in childminding that enable nearly 50% of Wellsprings' participants (mothers) to grow and succeed. Volunteers' commendable efforts, giving nature, enthusiastic attitude and their passion toward childminding makes a difference in these women’s success. It’s truly said: “Volunteers are the assets of any organisation and their efforts are priceless.”

There are few volunteers statement:

Alex Terhorst: I enjoy doing this because I can get valuable experience helping and working with families and it’s really fun! Seeing all the children smiling, learning, and having fun makes my day. It’s also great to know that I’m helping ladies focus on their studies and improve their lives for themselves, their families, and community.

Patricia Martin: I enjoy being a volunteer because it is very fulfilling. It reminds me of the days when my kids were little and it brings back pleasant memories of the naughty moments and times when I had to discipline them. I have a passion for children and I re-live my child rearing days, because my children have now grown into responsible adults. I look forward to using my skills in transforming the present generation, which is very challenging and rewarding.

Dalal Smiley 

CEO - Wellsprings for Women