A few months earlier I was at home on a cold mid-winter day, heating on high, coffee in hand, when my phone rang. A friend called to ask for some help, she explained that many volunteers who assisted in a range of welfare services had taken leave to travel north, retirees with the capacity to seek and find the sun. I, too, had just returned from a North Queensland beach holiday and was adjusting to dark, cold days.
I have always had some misgivings about volunteer work, was it fair to take work away from people who need paid employment? However, some organisations have no alternative as workers are in short supply. In Australia we have a high employment rate, in 2025 the Australian Bureau of Statistic identified two thirds of the population were in paid employment. Most of the remaining third are children, students, partners at home and retirees. Hands to help are not readily available.
The online application included police check and a range of questions, among them why I wanted to be a volunteer, then I was invited to meet the manager, Sara, and given a site tour. Foodbank warehouse is a huge supply depot, purpose-built and intended to last a long time. A statement about poverty in itself.
Sara had previously worked in a big barn warehouse and been in her current role for a few years. A woman with a jovial nature, strong presence and welcoming smile, she exudes comfort and ease along with an underlying ‘Don’t mess with me’. She seems very much the right woman for her job. Unspoken boundaries of behaviour are important when interacting with vulnerable people.
The next week it was time for me to start. Learning the ropes of a storeman required wearing big boots, a thick warm coat, orange safety vest, beanie and gloves. I felt like Bibendum the Michelin man. I met my co-workers, Ted and Trev, dressed like me, about the same age and who also looked a bit like Bibendums. I mixed up their names a few times so they decided to call me Tod, “Just to make life easier”, Ted said.
