Volunteering Makes a Difference case studies
The Wayside Chapel
A group of young people from the YOTS Outreach program in Macquarie Fields volunteered at The Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross, an organisation that provides support to homeless and marginalised people. Using music as a tool for connecting, the talented young volunteers put on a music performance for the homeless people. Their music had everyone dancing in the street!
The Wayside Chapel who initially did not feel that they had any suitable volunteering opportunities for the young people. Since this particular volunteering outing, they have started a music program for young volunteers. This case demonstrates the importance of tapping into young people's skills, talents and interests when developing volunteering opportunities and how this can allow an organisation to expand the ways it can meet its objectives, reach its service users and engage young people as volunteers.
Following on from this experience students at Chapel school, run by YOTS, developed a Service Learning project working with the homeless at The Wayside Chapel. The youths developed and used a survey to research items that the homeless people need in winter 2007. The youths present the information they have collected to students at Pymble Ladies College who then collected a whole range of winter gifts for Chapel school to donate to the Wayside Chapel. The young people at Chapel planned to also run a morning tea session where they will offer the people at The Wayside Chapel some cakes and cookies they baked themselves.
A big thanks to the young people at YOTS (and to Lawrence and his guitar!) for their beautiful, engaging and inspiring music. We hope to hear you again really soon!
We conducted an orientation session about volunteering with a group of young people at Ted Noffs Foundation who the following week went to do some volunteer work with a couple of community organisations taking part in the pilot program.
Service-learning camp on the Cape Don
Young people and staff from Youth Off The Streets spent two days on board the Cape Don humanitarian aid ship to help with its construction. The Cape Don Society is always looking for both skilled and unskilled volunteers to help with the boat and they were more than happy to participate in the VMAD pilot program. The young people slept in cabins on the ship and ate with the rest of the crew who were welcomed the group of young people and regaled them with stories. The crew consisted of a range of professionals including marine engineers, carpenters, ex-Navy officers, welders, divers.
The young people spent two days volunteering in a profession of their choice. Some were down in the engine room fixing pistons, others were on the top deck welding and painting, and one young man who wanted to specialise developed some carpentry skills. This resulted in a very successful volunteering outing. The young people worked well, were enthusiastic and enjoyed the adventure that was sleeping, working, and having fun aboard a very large ship.