Celebrating our change makers!

During May, we celebrated National Volunteer Week (NVW) and showed how the Brotherhood of St. Laurence (BSL) volunteers are change makers.

In a week that stretched across every area of BSL, we connected with volunteers like never before. Each volunteer received a personalised thank you card from BSL Executive Director, Travers McLeod and some sites received a personalised visit from members of the Executive Team.

Love and appreciation were shown with the presentation of certificates to celebrate length of service milestones and BSL branded name badges during morning and afternoon teas. Volunteers were also gifted discount coupons for BSL stores and Brotherhood Books.

We also teamed up with Whittlesea Community Connections to deliver training on how volunteering is valuable to potential employers and the skills that can be gained. Our Volunteer Engagement Team also attended the Volunteering Victoria NVW forum where an incredible panel shared their unique experiences on affecting change within their communities.

During our May Town Hall, Trav recognised how volunteers have been “enriching the services BSL provides and growing the impact and diversity of what we can do and strengthen our organisation.”

Afterwards, the Town Hall’s Hot Seat segment highlighted how volunteers not only help BSL create change, but also change in themselves. ICT Service Desk Officer, Ghouse Mohammad, spoke about how volunteering at our Northcote op shop opened a pathway to employment within our ICT team. While Sonia Marcon, a current volunteer in our Brunswick op shop, talked about how volunteering allowed her to reintegrate with community and re-build social networks and workplace confidence following the impact of COVID lockdowns.

Today, BSL partners with more than 900 volunteers who contribute in many different ways and even though National Volunteer Week has ended, we continue to be grateful for the time, skills, passion, experience, and impact volunteers bring to our organisation.