Hi. I'm Miki, and I volunteer at Alamein Neighbourhood and Learning Centre. I volunteer for bread collection helper as well as the classroom helper.

How did you become a volunteer?

I was inspired to do volunteering because I thought that I could be useful, even without having a special skill. The volunteers at the centre that I was getting support for my English language skill and the English course, I was so impressed with them. They were very nice and kind and they put so many hours and effort for us learning students, so I wanted to do something similar like that. I was very happy that they are there for the community and I wanted to be a help as well.

What do you enjoy about volunteering?

The volunteering's been very enjoyable. I get to learn Australian way, but at the same time, we can talk about how we do other ways as well, and then we share those information, how people live or react in a different way. Then we can have a chat and have fun with it. When I was assisting in a computer class, a particular lady, she was very happy that I was helping her because she couldn't use her hand. She asked me to take a note for her, and after she went home she could study or she could practice, have her resource notes and then come back to the next week's class.

What advice do you have for others?

My advice to diverse background volunteers, or who wants to volunteer, is to be open. And don't hesitate or don't be scared, because it's quite fun and a lot of people are actually interested to know your background, and it's a great icebreaker to talk about those things. And it only takes a bit of time of your spare time. I recommend to find volunteering opportunities on the website. I went there as well to have a look through all the information, what else I could do, and there's so many roles there that it might suit you. I recommend people to go out there and have a look at the website.