Tags: Bribie Island Volunteers.
From the July/August edition of The Mini Bribie Islander onwards, the “Meet the Volunteers” section has featured a selection of dedicated people who give freely of their time to work in some of the many roles that are required at the Bribie Island and District Neighbourhood Centre but until now, we have not paid tribute to anyone who is a part of the team which operates the very popular thrift shop.
To end that statistic, this month I would to introduce someone who not only works in the thrift shop but spend another two days each week in the reception area, Carol Davies. Carol has been a local resident intermittently for the past forty years and has been volunteering at the Neighbourhood Centre for almost a year. ‘When I first started here, it was only for Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning but once I found that I was really enjoying my time here and deriving so much satisfaction from both the opportunity to help those who required assistance and the great camaraderie that exists between all the other volunteers, I started doing more days each week,’ Carol said.
‘We are always having a laugh and I think that it is this friendly atmosphere that keeps bringing customers back to the thrift shop as well as knowing that they can pick up a real bargain here,’ she added. Carol also pointed out that she is “a big talker” and this is an asset when working in either of her roles at the centre. For some time now, Carol has been putting in many hours of study each week and she told me that she is now in the final year of a course which will result in her attaining qualifications as a Bachelor of Science and Psychology. I am sure that these4 studies would certainly be of help when carrying out her roles at the Neighbourhood Centre.
As I have already heard from everyone who works at the centre, Carol remarked that being able to see someone leave with a smile on their face because of what she has done is wonderfully satisfying and this is such a large part of her motivation to volunteer at the centre. The Bribie Island and District Neighbourhood Centre offers access to a diverse range of services and these include personal and family counselling, debt relief counselling, emergency relief, computer tuition and the provision to free food through the Neighbourhood Harvest program each Tuesday morning.
The centre also provides access to Centrelink and legal services and runs a variety of courses that cover topics such as parenting and dealing with addiction. For those who would like to be more conversant with English, a group of like-minded people meet at the centre each Monday Situated at 9 Verdoni Street in Bellara, the Neighbourhood Centre is open each weekday except Friday from 9am until 3pm and, if anyone would like to find out more about either the services that are available at the centre or perhaps offering their time as a volunteer, they are welcome to visit there for a talk with the staff or to give them a call on 3408 8440.
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https://thebribieislander.com.au/volunteers-in-the-community/