We had the pleasure of having Gracie join one of our community Brush with Kindness Days where she helped paint a Sydney based women’s transitional shelter for women and children escaping domestic violence.
Gracie found out about us (Habitat for Humanity Australia) through friends who have volunteered with Habitat in Malaysia. Habitat has been on Gracie’s radar for a while but now during COVID she found time to be able to volunteer herself. Gracie has volunteered with many other organisations overseas but she shared that she wanted to support locally naturally due to the restrictions on travel in 2020. “I like that at Habitat you can dedicate 1 day. It is a great option if you aren’t in a position volunteer for 6 weeks or 3 months.” said Gracie.
We asked Gracie what her experience had been like throughout the day. Gracie shared: “It was a really good day. I think it’s it’s quite refreshing that people who have time on their hands come in, give their time and no one really complains about whatever the jobs are given. The volunteers are so willing to work as a team and do whatever the tasks need doing to get the project completed.”
“I would say to anyone thinking about the volunteering, that if you had time on your hands it is a great way to do something useful. The volunteering onboarding is simple, you just have to do the induction show up on the day and then you are shown different takes and how to complete them. If you’ve got the skills to contribute definitely do it because you are giving women and children the opportunity to live in a decent place. You are able to fulfill a basic human need by helping these women and children live in a decent home so they can feel safe, so what’s better than that!?”
We asked Gracie what drove her to volunteer and what Home means to her. Gracie shared with us: “For me Home is very much a basic human need. It is fundamental to having a decent positive life. I think if you don’t have a place to call home or it’s in shambles it’s not easy to be healthy mentally or even spiritually. Having a home just means a safe place that you go to at the end of the day. It’s a place of safety, whether it’s a refuge, or otherwise, it is where you can rest your head at night, relax, and feel safe.”
If you want to volunteer with us please visit: https://www.habitat.org.au/volunteer/volunteer-in-australia/
