Volunteering - The Gift of Giving to Others

For Chaplaincy Support Group member, Verna Woods, the desire to volunteer in the community and serve others is something that is in her DNA. Verna's parents were committed to volunteering, as are her children.

The local Balwyn resident has been generating funds for the Balwyn Chaplaincy Support Group by coordinating Balwyn High School's second-hand book program for many years, a role she began in 1989. This money is then used to help pay for the services of the Korus Connect Chaplain at the school.

Verna's dedicated and generous service to the community was recently acknowledged when she received the 2020 City of Boroondara Volunteer of the Year Award, in the presence of family, friends and Korus Connect representatives.

Less well known is that in 2014, Verna received a commemorative plaque recognising her 20 years of service to the community through Special Religious Instruction, helping students at her children's school learn about the values, beliefs and stories of the Christian faith. Some of these students met her again through her work with Balwyn High School!

In her own practical and wise words, Verna believes that "volunteering is about seeing; noticing things that could be better - things that could help people, the environment, animals, situations. Seeing - believing - then doing something about it."