LAST week NVC Group celebrated National Volunteer Week with special lunches at Riverside Gardens in Nambucca Heads and Autumn Lodge in Macksville.

NVC Group Riverside Gardens Service Manager Kylie Kuwert said volunteer week has always been on the top of her organisation’s celebration list as the not-for-profit company was started by volunteers way back in 1974.

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“NVC Group was created by a group of dedicated, local volunteers who saw a need for a home for elderly people in the Nambucca Valley nearly fifty years ago,” she said.

“Prior to this, if people needed aged care services, they had to leave the area and their friends and loved ones.

“I want to thank all of the wonderful volunteers who work at NVC Group’s aged care homes today: Riverside Gardens, Autumn Lodge and Cedar Place.

“You all do so much wonderful work, with humility and grace.”

Neryl Graham is one of the volunteers at Riverside Gardens.

She has been a regular visitor there since 2015, when her mum and dad moved into a retirement village unit, before eventually moving into the aged care home itself.

“Over the last seven years I have witnessed the great job done by many volunteers to improve the quality of life for the residents at Riverside Gardens,” she said.

“In 2022, I retired, so I put up my hand to join in and volunteer.

“My favourite activity with the residents is to take them out for walks, so they can enjoy the beautiful Nambucca River and its surrounds.

“Walking along the river is something a lot of us just take for granted, but it means so much to them.”

At NVC Group, volunteers form a close bond with the Recreational Activity Officers, as they lead the delivery of activities for residents in the aged care homes.

“Autumn Lodge would really benefit from some more volunteers to assist with individual visits, games, foot spas, nail file and painting,” said Sonia Watts, one of the dedicated Recreational Activities Officers at the facility.

“We have amazing volunteers,” said Kerrie Cue, Recreational Activities Officer, Riverside Gardens.

“But we could always do with more helpers, especially a few more men, would be great.”

Sandra Morrisey, who helps with the arts and crafts at Riverside Gardens, said, “You can do so many different things to help – there’s day excursions, taking someone out for a coffee at the café nearby, playing bowls or putt putt.

“You can always try volunteering in one area, and if you don’t like it, there’s always something else you could try instead.”

“Volunteer Week is a chance to celebrate all the wonderful work that so many do, unrecognised and humbly,” said Kerrie Cue, at the lunch Riverside Gardens hosted for their volunteers.

“Volunteering is not only good for our residents, but I think volunteers get a lot out of it too.”

History of volunteering at NVC Group

NVC Group would not have existed except for the time of volunteers on its original steering committee: Bernard Laverty, Chris Sugden, Mrs O Smith, Mrs R McKay, Mr J Mattick, Rev R Date, Mrs D Hardge, Mrs C Bennett, Mrs O Smith, Mrs E Killen, Mrs J Nash, Mr J Davidson, Mr J Tome and Rev C Steep.

Fundraising by volunteers contributed greatly to the Autumn Lodge nursing home being built in Macksville in 1977.

Autumn Lodge was truly a community project, completed by passionate volunteers, all over the valley.

In November 1973, the Nambucca Guardian News reported: “The fundraising committee of the Nursing Home project are keeping busy, with many activities being held in the district and other groups being urged to do whatever they can to provide additional funds”.

The Nambucca Guardian News printed regular articles over the decades to follow, charting the efforts of the volunteers’ fundraising.

Efforts both big and small were made, from one family in Scotts Head opening their home to host a barbeque, to a Bowraville committee organising a huge smorgasbord dinner with music and dancing.

There was even an appeal for people in the valley to donate a day’s wages to the fund, to pay for the dirt needed to lay in Short Street in Macksville in the late 1970s.

And a historical overview of volunteers for NVC Group wouldn’t be complete without a mention of the Autumn Lodge Auxiliary.

The Autumn Lodge Auxiliary spanned almost 50 years and it raised money through countless stalls, fetes and musical performances.

The funds it raised purchased everything from a piano, to furniture, medical aids and in one year, 40 televisions.

The auxiliary even published a cookbook with residents’ favourite recipes.

Unfortunately, in 2021, the Autumn Lodge Auxiliary made the reluctant decision to finish, mainly due to COVID-19 restrictions making meetings and planning activities very difficult.

COVID-19 had a devastating impact on the whole volunteer sector, with nearly 2,000,000 fewer volunteers in 2022 compared to pre-pandemic times, according to Volunteer Australia.

In 2010, one in three adults in Australia volunteered.

In 2022, the number had declined to one in four, with 83 percent of volunteer organisations needing more volunteers too.