Students hopeful of young volunteer award win

Corinda High students (from left) Daniel Brodie, Kylle Bailey, Jayden Workmen and Jack Fox help out at Lifeline.

Students and staff at Brisbane’s Corinda State High were eagerly waiting to hear who won this year’s Queensland Young Volunteer Awards — which were still to be announced when community connect went to print.

Principal Helen Jamieson nominated a group of 350 students under the group category — community service volunteers.

“All of our students from years 8 to 12 participate in the Student Leadership Program which involves volunteering at school, in the community and on global projects like the 40 hour famine,” says Helen.

“Our nomination in the community service category supports the criteria contributing to the strength and wellbeing of the community.

“The students have contributed to over 30,000 hours of volunteering in the community and we’ve formed more than 20 partnerships with services such as Lifeline, Canteen, Red Cross, Foodbank and the Sinnamon Park Nursing Home.”

Helen says the work includes helping out at nursing homes and with fundraising activities for children with cancer. After the summer floods, the students were involved with St Vincent de Paul’s and Lifeline’s follow up work — sorting and distributing clothes that were donated.

“Our students are gaining a greater understanding of the complex needs of people in our community and are also overcoming stereotypes,” says Helen.

“For example, one of our girls working with the elderly has a new understanding of the life of an older person and the challenges many elderly people face daily.”

Student Jack Fox says volunteering lets him “give back to the community” while seeing how hard people in the community work.

“There are hundreds of volunteers giving up their time working to help people,” he says.

For other young people contemplating volunteering, Jack says, “Go for it. Volunteering really makes a difference — you’ll enjoy it heaps more than you think”.