Joondalup Mayor Albert Jacob and Lee Graf take a stroll with members of the Befriend Burns Beach Walkers.
Camera IconJoondalup Mayor Albert Jacob and Lee Graf take a stroll with members of the Befriend Burns Beach Walkers. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Volunteers recognised for befriending attitude

Tyler BrownJoondalup Times

INTERNATIONAL Volunteer Day on Thursday recognised about 24,000 members of the City of Joondalup community.

One of these was Kinross resident Lee Graf, who volunteers with social connection organisation Befriend and hosts weekly sunset walks along the Burns Beach foreshore.

“What I love about volunteering with Befriend is the different people I meet from my local community,” she said.

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“It’s very satisfying to help people make new connections.

“I enjoy sharing the beautiful view with others and doing something good for my health.”

Ms Graf said her advice to anyone looking to volunteer would be to “choose something you do anyway and extend the invitation to others to join you”.

The City of Joondalup already has a volunteering rate almost two per cent above the greater Perth average and Mayor Albert Jacob said that figure appeared to be on the rise.

“We’ve had an increase of almost 4000 volunteers between 2011 and 2016, which indicates Joondalup is becoming a more cohesive, sustainable and resilient community,” he said.

“Local organisations would not survive without the support of their dedicated volunteers and the variety of roles in Joondalup is surprisingly diverse.”

The Joondalup Volunteer Resource Centre – a partnership between the City and peak volunteering body Volunteer WA – aims to link potential volunteers with the ideal volunteer role in the community.

The centre operates from the Joondalup Library, Tuesdays to Thursdays, 9.30am to 2.30pm.

Contact 9400 4734 for more information.

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