Do you ever feel lost or like you have no purpose? Perhaps you’re retired, and have spare time you don’t know what to do with? Or looking to gain some experience and build your skills?
The answer could be to become a volunteer.
From 20–26 May, it’s National Volunteer Week and at YPRL we love our volunteers! Around 90 community members generously give their time to our library branches and work in a variety of ways including these programs and services:
‘I like books and reading. I find books I want to read and discover new and interesting things. I also like helping others find books.’
- Alice, Watsonia Library volunteer
‘I started volunteering as I was unsure what career I wanted to do. I’m autistic and I enjoy looking for books and find it a challenge. It’s part of my routine now and it feels funny if I don’t do it’.
- Alice, Watsonia Library volunteer
Alice, aged 26, has been volunteering for almost a year, her high attention to detail is helpful as she assists with finding books for other library patrons who later collect them from the library.
There are many benefits to volunteering, including giving back to the community and having a sense of pride and purpose. Volunteering is also a great way to expand your friendship network, learn new skills and get out of your comfort zone.
If volunteering at the library appeals to you, find out more information and how to apply.
For further inspiration on volunteering from volunteers, check out these amazing books on our shelves:
This collection of first-hand stories from the 1880s to 2020 shares the memories of courageous Australian volunteer firefighters. It takes readers to the frontlines to reveal the stark realities of the dangers they face to keep communities safe.
Also available as:
Planning a trip overseas with a volunteering component?
Then this book is for you. It provides information on choosing and organising a meaningful travel experience, raising funds and what to expect on arriving for your voluntary experience.
Kailas Wild, arborist by trade and conservationist at heart heard there were injured koalas on Kangaroo Island who could only be reached by a tree climber, so he drove 1500 kms to volunteer. Seven weeks later, he had crowd-funded money and rescued over 100 koalas. This is his story.
For more than 25 years, David Nott has taken unpaid leave from his job as a general and vascular surgeon with the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK to volunteer in war zones and supporting people after natural disasters. This book explores this journey as well as the foundation he and his wife begun to train doctors in working in these environments.
Also available in large print or audio
Surviving the Storms shares insightful first-hand accounts of rescues carried out by the remarkable Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) volunteer lifesavers from the past 20 years.