The Energy of Volunteers

Volunteers with energy make all the difference to not–for–profit organisations and on Friday, 11 July more than 100 volunteers will lend a helping hand to maintain Anglican Retirement Villages at Castle Hill's extensive gardens, revitalise the Kiosk – a local meeting point for residents and also paint a residential unit for visiting relatives.

"What a difference a day will make with 100 volunteers on hand to help with an assortment of gardening and maintenance jobs across the 120 acres of gardens. With the help of Integral Energy Australia employees and business partners who have come on board to volunteer their time, energy and enthusiasm, we will be able to work on identified areas of improvement to the residents of the villages", said Lynda Kings Volunteer Manager, Anglican Retirement Villages, Castle Hill (ARV).

Giving back to the community is a major motivation for volunteers and increasingly also for companies getting involved in volunteering opportunities for their employees. Integral Energy Australia approached The Centre for Volunteering, the peak body representing volunteers and not–for–profit organisations engaging volunteers, to find a corporate volunteering opportunity for their staff and business partners. Increasingly, corporations like Integral Energy are involving their staff in volunteering as a strategy to enhance staff development and morale and to give back to the local community in which they operate.

This was an exciting challenge for Odessa O'Brien, The Centre's Corporate Volunteer Manager, who has worked with a variety of corporations on corporate volunteering activities. "With the expectation that over 100 people would be putting their hand up to volunteer, I knew that this would be a great opportunity to make maximum impact on a large scale. I had recently spoken to Lynda from ARV, just one of The Centre for Volunteering's 550 members, and she wanted to engage with a company to help with the massive garden area. All the pieces came together after talking with Kandice at Integral, Lynda at VRS and scoping what could be done on one day, " said Odessa O'Brien.

With over 30 years of experience in the sector, The Centre for Volunteering has observed a number of trends emerging over recent years in the development of volunteering in not–for–profit organisations. Volunteers see themselves as contributing to social change or community benefits through their volunteer work. This sentiment also extends to the corporate sector and their employees. Statistics from the last ABS census revealed 1.6 million NSW residents are engaged in some form of volunteering for not–for–profit organisations ranging from the sporting sector to the community welfare sector and everything in between.

The Anglican Retirement Village offers a range of volunteering opportunities that greatly enrich the lives of residents and by all accounts the volunteers as well. If you would like to find out further information regarding volunteering opportunities please contact Lynda Kings on 9421 5443.