Top honours for local legends

Published on 11 December 2023

One has removed tens-of-thousands of pieces of graffiti and supports Onkaparinga residents living with a disability. Another brings joy to local families by leading a much-loved playgroup. Both are among the winners of 2023 Southern Suburbs Volunteer Service Awards, which recognise those who’ve gone “above and beyond” for their community.

Hosted annually by Amanda Rishworth MP, this year’s awards were presented at the Cove Civic Centre in Hallett Cove last week. A whopping six City of Onkaparinga volunteers took home a prestigious award for their contributions, among about 30 overall from the southern suburbs.

Congratulations superstars! Learn more about the winners below.

Noarlunga Library legends

Four of council’s award winners were from the Noarlunga Library volunteer team, representing 65 years of volunteering contributions between them!

Three of the volunteers—Mal Dyer, Peter Byrne and Lorraine Malby—are part of the library’s Outreach Home Delivery Service, which sees library items delivered to homes and residential care facilities monthly. The recipients have limited mobility through sickness, age or incapacity, with cases of temporary illness or disability also considered.

Mal (volunteering since 2002), Peter (since 2007) and Lorraine (since 2010) have developed lifelong friendships with their fellow volunteers, library staff and customers over the years. They’re known for their senses of humour and work ethic, and are always willing to go the extra mile, including doing extra shifts when needed to support their fellow volunteers.

The fourth award recipient was Mal Thiele (volunteering since 2008), who typically volunteers as a justice of the peace (JP) at the library once a week, on top of volunteering as a JP at the Repatriation Hospital and as president of the Vietnam Veterans Federation (SA).

Mal regularly offers to fill in any gaps to ensure Noarlunga Library’s JP service is available six days a week for three hours a day, which sometimes sees him doing two-to-three shifts each week.

John Damms

John started volunteering with both the council’s Graffiti Removal Volunteer Team and the Ability Support Team in 2018 after sustaining multiple injuries.

Along with his graffiti removal teammate, Drew—the rest of the team call the pair the “A-team”—John has removed more than 27,000 individual pieces of graffiti from the community in the past five years, dedicating close to 3000 hours of his time!

John’s work ethic and his commitment to providing a local environment where everyone feels safe help to motivate his colleagues. He and Drew are regularly stopped by members of the community, who want to express their gratitude.

In the Ability Support Team, John supports adults living with a disability in the program’s shed, Shedtastics singing group, dinner clubs and discos, where his caring nature, enthusiasm and penchant for storytelling are a perfect fit.

He combined his empathetic nature with the completion of several training courses, which helped him acquire the skills essential to interact with clients with different abilities.

John’s volunteering journey has not only helped him regain strength in his body and mind following his injuries, it has helped give him purpose.

“Feeling I’m contributing to my community in such a positive way motivates me,” says John about the thanks he receives from residents while out removing graffiti.

He says helping people who are trying their hardest on a project to realise their goals is one of the most fulfilling aspects of his ability support work.

“I found my niche and it’s great to be a part of it,” he continues.

“We laugh like kids, all equal, all humans enjoying life. The love they have for each other is all-encompassing. They are my family.

“I love every moment spent with the Shedtastics group. Their performances are so heart-warming [and] I get emotional every time. It’s so uplifting.”

Sam Blight

Sam Blight also began volunteering with the City of Onkaparinga in 2018. At the time, she was attending the playgroup at Seaford Community Centre with her son, when the person who was running the group decided to move on.

Sam knew how important the program was for all the families involved so, not wanting the playgroup to close, she decided to put her hand up to run it.

The group welcomes children aged zero to five from 9:30am to 11:30am on Wednesdays and Fridays each week, where the children have free play and snack time, morning tea for parents and then dance and story time. Occasionally the volunteers facilitate sensory and arts and craft activities too.

Not just benefiting the children, the playgroup sessions offer parents the chance to meet other parents with children of a similar age, to mingle, connect, share advice with one another, and receive help and assistance when needed.

Volunteers make a conscious effort to talk with all the parents, to check in on them and make them feel looked after.

Sam says one of her favourite parts about volunteering at the playgroup is watching the children grow and develop.

“The most heart-warming aspect is getting to know a group of infants, from when they’re born, to watching and witnessing their evolution into little humans ready to go out into the world, doing bigger and better things,” she says.

Volunteering has also provided Sam with her own evolution.

“Thanks to this program, I regained confidence in myself,” she explains.

“I had a small number of friends around the time [she signed up] as a volunteer and as a stay-at-home mum, and I felt terribly isolated. I’d left the workforce for a while as well.

“This volunteer position allowed me to develop myself and progress to the next stage of my life. It has made me feel proud of myself to see how much I was able to grow through the years.”

Become a volunteer

Join the vibrant community of Onkaparinga volunteers and embark on a rewarding journey of making a difference. Your time, skills, and passion can transform lives, protect our environment, and strengthen the fabric of the community.

Whether you're a passionate nature enthusiast, a creative artist, or a caring person, there's a volunteer opportunity waiting for you. Visit the council’s website or contact the volunteer management team at volunteermanagement@onkaparinga.sa.gov.au or by calling 8301 7243 to discover your perfect volunteer opportunity.