Volunteering: Discovering My True Calling Through Service

Through a process of trial and error, I pursued what did light me up. I wanted to understand social issues in society, the life of the poor, and the reasons for their situations. I volunteered for as many organizations as I had time for. My plan was to do this for as long as it took to find something I could truly engage in. I did an English tutoring course called AIMS at NMIT once a week, where we learned how to teach English to a refugee family. I did it for a year, and it was an enriching experience.

Other endeavors included Red Cross programs, such as basketball at the Melbourne Youth Justice Centre once a month with the inmates. It surprised me that 90 percent of the inmates were reoffenders. They would do their time and be released, only to reappear in the system the next month. That told me that our justice system for the population in these youth prisons is not working.

Every Friday night was my St. Vincent de Paul food van night. We volunteers would meet in South Melbourne, prepare food, put on our bright orange vests, and drive to ten different locations around Melbourne, including Brunswick Street.