The Altona Sports Centre hosted the first Melbourne Workplace Big Day Out where employees from business partnered with people attending Mambourin Enterprises and David House (annecto – the people network) to participate in a range of sports and activities.

The feedback from the workplace volunteers was extremely positive and indicated a willingness to be involved in community projects. Thanks to sponsors Bendigo Bank and Atlas Steel and supporters City West Water.

More...

The Migrant Resource Centre North West Region identified that the Hobsons Bay residents from the Burmese community were having difficulty navigating the private rental system.

Angus Scott-Walker from local real estate agent Barlow McEwan Tribe spoke to a group of community leaders about the application, bond and lease processes.

More...

This initiative gives young people in Laverton the opportunity to distribute small grants to projects led by young people, which benefit young people and the community.

The committee benefited earlier in the year from the expertise of Marketing and Communications Manager, Rebecca Smith from the CRT Group and Vince Camilleri, Principal from Mortgage Choice.

For this project, Vince was not contributing his knowledge of finance but his public speaking skills which are widely recognised due to his role as president of the Williamstown Toastmasters Association.

More...

At the latest Hobsons Bay InterAgency Network meeting Emergency Relief Services reported that there has been an increase in the number of families in need of food hampers and financial assistance. This has placed additional strain on food stocks that are already at low levels as the end of the financial year comes to a close.

There are two opportunities for business to get involved:

1. Join the Interagency Winter Food Collection and place a box in your staff room/foyer for non-perishable foods to be collected on Wednesday, 25th June

2. We need six volunteers from approximately 9.30am–1.00pm to pack the donated food into hampers on Thursday, 26th June at the Brooklyn Hall, which will then be distributed to families in need by Emergency Relief Services.

More...

Two small kindergartens with limited parent resources require some assistance in their gardens. This would be a great team building opportunity for a half or full day that can fit in with the schedule of your volunteers.

South Kingsville Community Centre (SKCC) provides a range of services for people from birth to mature age. The extensive facilities are available to community and commercial groups for functions and are well utilised for this purpose.

Centre manager Cheryl Neenan says "Our current logo was developed when the centre first opened approximately 14 years ago.

"Many people do not identify it with SKCC and we think that it would be a great idea to update our logo, bringing it into the 21st century."

A volunteer with design skills is required to initially discuss ideas with the group and then develop some logo options.

More...

The Coordinator and Management Committee at Frances Sullivan Kindergarten in Brooklyn would like to discuss some techniques for marketing their services.

This shouldn't take more than half a day and they can come to you!

annecto - the people network provides support services for people with a disability and older people such as accommodation, employment and day activities.

The agency currently transports 90 people a day to a centre in Yarraville via more than nine different bus and taxi routes around the western suburbs.

They are seeking a volunteer who works in logistics to review their current system and suggest improvements. After an initial discussion, this work could be done via email.

One Umbrella produces healthy, nutritious meals for the homeless and hungry in Melbourne using surplus food donated by businesses and food wholesalers.

Food donations can include:

• Meat that has been ground too fine by a butcher
• Off-cuts of cheese leftover after being shaped into triangles
• Fruit and vegetables that don’t look their best but are perfectly edible
• Pastry past its 'best-by' date
• High fibre bread not sold on the day it was baked
• Sealed items such as fruit juices, breakfast cereals, jams, biscuits
• Other items not touched by patients in hospitals and left on trays.

Food will be collected by a One Umbrella volunteer.

The Visy Cares Link Centre in Laverton is a transition program for young people aged between 11 and 14 who are  not attending school.

Volunteers are required to correspond with a student via email to improve literacy skills. The commitment required would be at least one email a week for a school term, approximately 12 weeks.

Projects would conclude with a morning or afternoon tea with students and workplace volunteers.

If you would like further information about any of the projects mentioned above, please contact Annie Grant, Volition Project Coordinator on:

Tel: 9932 1284
Email: agrant@hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au
Web: www.hobsonsbay.vic.gov.au/volition