Friends of Mary Carroll Park wetlands group volunteer passes 30 years service

HUNTINGDALE’S Unice Robinson has spent the past 30 years taking care of the Mary Carroll Park wetlands.

She volunteers about 20 hours per week towards the park as part of the Friends of Mary Carroll Park wetlands group.

“Our aim is to rehabilitate, preserve and educate about wetlands,” she said.

She said she dedicates so much time because she enjoyed helping the wetlands and seeing the wildlife so happy.

Ms Robinson originally got involved when she was walking her children in the early 1980s .

She came across the wetlands and saw people looking after it and weeding and wanted to get involved.

“It wasn’t a formalised group at that time and there were people concerned and I felt like I wanted to do something,” she said.

These days she has more than 20 volunteers that help her out as the co-ordinator.

Some of the tasks involve working with schools as well as weeding, and looking out for birds and endangered species.

She also grows some of the new plants for the wetlands in her own backyard.

“I grow some of the seeds at home and then we have a wonderful volunteer look after it in there backyard until that goes back into the wetlands,” she said.

Along with her work at the Mary Carroll Park wetlands, she is also involved in the Southern Foothills Girl Guides Region.

She said she loves meeting new people as part of volunteering.

“You get to meet lots of different people who have got the same interest,” she said.