Celebrating contributions of volunteers
Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria will honour and acknowledge all volunteers at a special event to be hosted in Hawthorn tomorrow. National Volunteer Week, now in its 25th year, celebrates the power of volunteering.
Maree McCabe, Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria chief executive, says volunteers are the 'lifeblood' of most organisations.
At Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria volunteers contribute invaluable time and experience, enabling the organisation to provide vital services and support to Victorians living with dementia, their families and their carers.
Maree McCabe, Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria chief executive, says National Volunteer Week is a particularly pertinent time as it was a band of committed volunteers who established Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria more than 30 years ago.
“Volunteers are the lifeblood of our organisation. They truly are an extraordinary group of people committed to supporting staff to make a real and tangible difference in the community,” Ms McCabe says.
The organisation has a dedicated volunteer program that comprehensively trains those who join. Volunteers assist in role plays during education courses with medical students, as event staff and perform an array of administrative and supporting tasks. Volunteers also make up the organisation’s various committees, including the Consumer Advisory Committee, Younger Onset Reference Group and the Board of Directors.
In addition to this, volunteers share their personal stories in the media and in other promotional materials. Sharing their genuine, firsthand experience is crucial to helping eradicate stigma and to encourage people to talk more about dementia.
All of Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria volunteers receive extensive training appropriate to their roles and participation in ongoing training and professional development.
Volunteers also play an important role when it comes to dementia research.
“From a clinical perspective, we rely upon people living with dementia to participate in medical trials. Socially, dementia research also relies upon participation by carers, family members and friends of those living with dementia to generously share their experiences through participating in surveys and assisting in measuring the broader impact of dementia in the community,” Ms McCabe says.
Since July last year, Alzheimer’s Australia Victoria volunteers have contributed 3,017 hours of their time.
“Most of our volunteers do what they do because they want to give back after receiving support from the organisation during challenging times in their own lives,” she says.
Volunteering Australia’s National Volunteer Week runs from 12 to 18 May 2014. Find out more about the initiative.
