Have a read and consider joining in on the volunteering as it will make you feel good while doing good in your own community!

EUROBODALLA Shire Council manages and supports more than 700 happy, active, involved volunteers.

"I find that volunteering with a community organisation gives me the opportunity to meet like-minded people and make new friends while giving back to the community," said Howard, a council volunteer.

You can volunteer for one program or multiple programs, it's up to you! So why not read about the programs below and then...

* Community Transport: Provides local & long distance transport for people who require assistance.

* Support services for frail older people: Volunteers provide support to people in their home that assists with all aspects of daily living. They also provide support for group and individual social outings.

* Support services for people with disabilities: Volunteers assist with recreational and social activities for groups and individuals. Activities help people to learn new skills and to connect with their community.

* Youth Services: Cooking, sports, games, arts and craft at Youth Cafes in Batemans Bay and Narooma.

* Creative Custodians: Providing supervision and support at exhibitions, openings and events.

* Friends in Grief: Support & listening to people following a loss.

* Children's Services: Helping children with arts, crafts, cooking and sports at After School and Vacation Care Centres.

* Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Gardens: Gardening, conservation, promotion and education activities.

* Landcare: Hands-on projects to protect and repair the environment.

The Active Living team is part of Eurobodalla Shire Council’s Community Care area.

Our main focus is to enable frail aged people , people with disability and their carers remain active in our Community.

For more info: www.esc.nsw.gov.au/council-services/community-services/community-care

The Bermagui Seaside Fair is a multi-award-winning event, made possible by a network of volunteers.

Attracting up to 10,000 people, it provides a substantial boost to tourism, and is an ideal platform and focus for the community to showcase, promote and sell its talents, goods and services.

Fostering pride of place, involvement and belonging, it has enduring social, cultural, educational and economic benefits to the town.

The event’s success has directly resulted in donations of over $52,000 over 17 years and benefitted the projects of 26 Bermagui youth and community organisations. That is some achievement!

The Seaside Fair committee is seeking new people to help with organising and staging the event.

Particularly we would welcome assistance in the following areas - site logistics, media and PR, administrative support, event management and general helpers. Lots of helpers!

By contributing, you gain a huge sense of personal reward, experience the warm fuzzy feeling of being part of the community and you have a whole lot of fun along the way!

Please contact us, we would love to talk to you. Call Jo Jacobs on 6494 0191.

QUOTA International is a worldwide network of volunteers. Our motto is “We Share.”

We try to make the lives of disadvantaged women and children brighter by providing funds for special needs, supporting local women’s shelters and Nardy House for the profoundly disabled.

Once a month we cook dinner at the Narooma Youth Café.

Assisting those with hearing and speech difficulties is a core commitment.

We sponsor the services of a speech pathologist for students at Narooma, Bodalla and Central Tilba public schools.

Students gain confidence as their articulation improves. Today they are participating in class, conversing with others in a meaningful way and enjoying the company of friends at school.

Our award-winning Hand-In-Hand World Service program allows us to support various projects in developing countries.

They include: homes for destitute women and children, day care centres for malnourished children, paediatric wards for babies in dire need, and hearing and speech clinics for deaf students.

We also provide real help during natural disasters such as Cyclone Pam in Vanuatu and the earthquake in Nepal.

Locally, Quota provides a Year 11 scholarship of $750 to a student in Fine and Applied Arts at Narooma High School.

Our “Student of the Year” quest seeks the student with the top score in public speaking, general knowledge, and leadership skills.

Quarterly Trivia Nights and Sunday afternoon Meat Raffles provide critical financial support for local projects and organisations such as the Rural Fire Service, Marine Rescue, Narooma Rescue Squad and the Moruya oncology unit.

Many friendships that develop through Quota are life-long.

We enjoy working together to make our community a better place and we have a lot of fun doing it.

We meet the first Tuesday of the month at 7pm at the Club Narooma boardroom.

Prospective members are welcome. For information contact president Angela Hansen on 4476 2402 or email angela.hansen@bigpond.com.

THE Narooma Golf Club like many organisations relies on its volunteers.

The small army of volunteers work to keep the course in good order and just lately have been called up to work on the extra fleet of golf carts required to get golfers around the 8th hole bridge.

A core group of dedicated members take out carts in the morning and put them away at night.

They have been doing this since end of October 201, seven days a week!

Every Sunday they get cleaned and hosed down. They also get checked for damage and check and replace battery fluid.

Golf carts have been rented from Moore Bank golf club and cost the club an additional $750 per week.

This allows the club to operate the back nine other wise it would be closed to the condition of the bridge.

The club is hoping that they can commence works in mid-June 2015. This will depend on the necessary approvals and permits being approved  

The club members should be very appreciative of this group as they have saved the club thousands of dollars in labour during this time.

A CAR lies on its side on a steep embankment near Narooma.

The VRA arrive and quickly stabilise the car from rolling using equipment donated by Narooma Rotarians.

A family in Nepal or Vanuatu having lost everything to a natural disaster are offered shelter thanks to Narooma Rotary.

Ordinary people in our community achieving extra-ordinary things.

Polio will soon be in the past thanks to a Rotary initiative called PolioPlus.

Since 1905 Rotary, a non-political, non-religious organisation has grown to nearly one and a quarter million members in 220 countries actively supporting local, national and international communities.

In Narooma, our club meets weekly, has fun together, builds friendships, works together to raise money to support our community.

Some of our projects include: raising funds for the upgrade of Moruya Hospital's Oncology Ward, assisting Narooma High School students with university expenses for three years, helping Year 11 Students learn about safe and responsible driving

Soon we will be hosting another exchange student from overseas and offering a local student the same opportunities.

Our monthly markets help us raise funds to help the community, but that is not all we do.

We have car rallies, card quiz and film nights, silly hat nights to raise money for Mental Health and of course our Australia Day Duck race for "ShelterBox".

Through our donations we are at the fore front when a disaster strikes around the world and members join with like-minded Rotarians to travel and share their skills in the far flung corners of the globe.

We welcome you to join with us. Call Mike Young on 0419 894 648 or Chris O'Brien on 0408 489 247 or come to the Whale Motor Inn on Thursday nights or come say hello at the Narooma Rotary Markets at NATA Oval this Sunday. 

THREE years ago I relocated from Sydney to Narooma and approximately a year later I was invited to join the Lions Club of Narooma and District. The club although small in numbers is a welcoming group and friendships were easily made.

The experience of being in Narooma Lions has been very fulfilling for me personally as I not only enjoy being part of the community I am able to give back to the community.

By joining Lions you are able to raise much needed funds while enjoying yourself and see these funds donated to various needy organisations who are vital for our community, for example the Snowy Hydro SouthCare helicopter and Moruya Hospital.

The Lions motto “We serve” rings true for Narooma and District Lions Club and as well as being part of Clean up Australia, we’ve made one of our ongoing projects to pick up along our beaches, coastal areas and the take part in LandCare tree planting where possible.

While the barbecue is very much a part of our fundraising, and we’re very good at it, the barbecues we’re cooking for are in fact not raising funds for our Lions Club but are for other organisations.

Examples of this are Australia Day at the Surf Club, the Youth Week pool party, and the Beyond Blue Easter barbecue.

I am amazed of the generous spirit in our community, people who give their time and energy to volunteering in so many ways to make a better environment for all.

Without Volunteers there would be a void, we save local governments a lot of expenditure, and there have been many great projects that have been carried out by volunteers

Narooma District Lion’s members are reminded that this week’s Lions Club meet has been moved to Thursday night at the Narooma Golf Club.

At this meeting we will be hearing from Kersten Davis a dementia nurse, who was the recipient of a Lions funded scholarship.

The meeting like all our general meetings is open to the public and part of the meeting is a delicious meal from Paul’s on the Course.

- By Margie Latimer

Narooma Lions donations 2014-15

2014

Narooma Monties Place $500

Narooma High School (for concert) $500

Lions Christmas Books purchase - donated to local schools and library. $120.

The Lifesaver Foundation $80

Narooma Public School (for prize) $50

Lions Childhood Cancer Research Foundation $250

Snowy Hydro SouthCare helicopter $500

Narooma Men's Shed $500

2015

Lions Eye Health Program $60 Jan

Lions Prostate Cancer Research $200 Jan

Snowy Hydro SouthCare helicopter $200 Jan

Lions Drug Awareness Program $100 Jan

Lions Macular Disease Foundation$100 Mar

Lions Hearing Dogs Foundation $100 Mar

Narooma Surf Life Savers Club - Nippers $500 Mar

Narooma Choristers $250 (for Twilight Concert)

Narooma Choristers $250

Beyond Blue $250 April

Narooma Lions Football Club $200 April

Cancer Council NSW $230 May

Narooma Oyster Festival support $500 May

Total to date: $5490

•  Volunteers are happier, healthier and sleep better than those who don’t volunteer – doctors should recommend it.

•  96 per cent of volunteers say that it “makes people happier”.

•  95 per cent of volunteers say that volunteering is related to feelings of wellbeing.

•  Volunteering results in a “helper’s high”, a powerful physical and emotional feeling experienced when directly helping others.

•  Just a few hours of volunteer work makes a difference in happiness and mood.

•  Sustained volunteering is associated with better mental health.

•  Altruistic emotions and behaviours are associated with greater well-being, health, and longevity.

•  A strong correlation exists between the well-being, happiness, health, and longevity of people who are emotionally kind and compassionate in their charitable helping activities.

•  The experience of helping others provides meaning, a sense of self-worth, a social role and health enhancement.

•  Volunteering is highly associated with greater health and happiness.

•  Volunteers contribute $200 billion to the Australian economy annually.

•  The number of volunteers in Australia has doubled from 1995 (3.2 million) to 2010 (6.1 million).

•  The rate of volunteering by young people in Australia increased from 16 per cent in 1995 to 27.1 per cent in 2010.

•  Of the 600,000 not for profit organisations in Australia only 60,000 have paid staff.