Community organisations and local government authorities throughout Western Australia have been funded a total of $70,000 to celebrate Thank a Volunteer Day on 5 December.
Volunteering Minister Stephen Dawson said there had been a total of 41 successful applicants to receive funding as part of the Department of Communities' Thank a Volunteer Day Grants Program.
The United Nations designated 5 December each year as International Volunteer Day in 1985. In WA it is known as Thank a Volunteer Day.
The Thank a Volunteer Day Grants Program enables organisations across WA to celebrate their volunteers through events or activities such as award ceremonies, workshops, seminars, morning or afternoon teas, and excursions.
The recognition day also provides organisations with an opportunity to raise public awareness of the contributions that volunteers make in their community.
Many of the events will be a collaboration between multiple volunteer organisations in local communities and local governments.
Activities and events funded for Thank a Volunteer Day 2022 include:
- a long table high tea for volunteers of Good Sammy Enterprises across WA;
- a photographic and audio display acknowledging community volunteers in Broome's main shopping precinct, featuring portraits of local volunteers and QR codes directing people to individual interview podcasts;
- a Volunteer of the Year Award ceremony in Geraldton that celebrates and acknowledges outstanding volunteers; and
- a Volunteer 'Morning Tea on Wheels' in the Shire of Chapman Valley, where a locally made morning tea box of goodies and a volunteer appreciation bag will be delivered to volunteers at their farms and businesses.
As stated by Volunteering Minister Stephen Dawson:
"Western Australia can be truly thankful for its amazing and committed volunteers that are actively engaged in so many different programs and activities that support others.
"The last few years have seen the very best in WA's volunteers in some of the most trying situations.
"It's estimated that some 523,600 Western Australians volunteer each year through community organisations, groups or clubs - that's over a quarter of the State's population involved in some kind of formal, organised volunteering.
"Thank a Volunteer Day is just that: an opportunity for WA to thanks its thousands of volunteers for the varied and incredibly valuable things they do.
"Volunteering always brings out the best in people. Thankfully, it continues to be an integral part and play a vital role in the social fabric of many Western Australian communities."
