Volunteers are Change Makers!

National Volunteer Week is Australia’s largest annual celebration of volunteers.

The week-long event, held every May, recognises the vital support that millions of volunteers in our country provide to their communities and encourages people to consider volunteering. ‘Change Makers’ was the theme for this year – a fitting theme for the work that volunteers undertake across BSL, and an opportunity to celebrate our power to drive change.

At the May Town Hall meeting our Executive Director Trav McLeod spoke about how ‘the ethic of volunteering is essential if we as an organisation are going to achieve our vision of an Australia free of poverty.’ Trav paid recognition to the strong history of volunteer involvement at BSL and acknowledged the importance of volunteers in ‘enriching the services BSL provides and growing the impact and diversity of what we can do at BSL and strengthening the organisation.’

Volunteering also creates powerful change for the volunteers themselves. Following the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns, volunteering at our Brunswick op shop provided Sonia Marcon a way to reintegrate with community and re-build social and work confidence.

Ghouse Mohammad, BSL ICT Service Desk Officer, spoke about how volunteering at BSL opened a pathway to employment for him. Ghouse was initially drawn to volunteering with BSL as a way of giving to his community. While volunteering at the BSL Northcote op shop, he learned of a volunteer role in the ICT team. Having recently completed studies in IT, Ghouse was encouraged to apply for this volunteer role, then after volunteering with the Service Desk team for several months, an opportunity arose for a paid employment contract. Ghouse is now a proud BSL employee.

During National Volunteer Week several members of the BSL Executive Leadership team spent time alongside volunteers in action in their roles. Chief Strategy and Impact Officer, Zeah Behrend, who volunteered at BSL’s Deer Park and Brunswick stores, believes strongly in the impact that volunteers can have as powerful advocates for change. She said she 'deeply appreciates the value of volunteers' and the important connection to community that volunteering provides.

Volunteers have been instrumental to BSL’s success since we were founded in 1930. They are a conduit to their communities, opening doors for greater unity, connection, and impact, and are integral advocates for BSL’s mission to alleviate and eradicate poverty. Today, BSL partners with more than 900 volunteers who contribute in many ways. We are grateful for the time, skills, and experience that our volunteers bring to BSL, and for their passion and advocacy supporting our shared vision.

Interested to know more? Find out more and apply for volunteer opportunities at: bsl.org.au/get-involved/volunteer/