By Callum Ludwig
Benwerren is benefiting from some good old-fashioned hard yakka courtesy of Habitat for Humanity volunteers.
13 days’ worth of volunteer work has helped finish a number of projects around the site all with the end goal of making the stay at Benwerren as comfortable as possible for everyone who passes through.
Benwerren CEO Nichole Kelly said the efforts of the volunteers are huge for Benwerren and it is amazing the number of projects that they’ve been able to achieve and work through.
“Some of them have been on our wish list for years and years like the shade sail out the front and the retaining wall down to the river we’ve dreamed about, so it’s so exciting to see them come to fruition,” she said.
“It creates a more comfortable and safe environment, with the shade sail shading kids from the sun and the pathway that they’ve built making it safer to get down to the river, but what it also does is encourage people to be outside and enjoy the beautiful surrounds that we have here at Benwerren,”
“That just lends itself then to people being able to really rest, relax and recover by being in the outdoors.”
The volunteer effort is part of Habitat for Humanity’s Brush with Kindness volunteer program in an effort to provide practical support to women and children in need for International Women’s Day which was held at the start of March.
Volunteer Program Supervisor at Habitat for Humanity Brad Thexton said they get a lot of personal satisfaction out of it knowing what they are working on will help other people.
“The whole riverbank was overgrown with shrubs and blackberries and weeds and it hadn’t had any maintenance for a long time so we’ve taken all that back just to try and reinstate the path and the sensory garden for the people that are staying here,” he said.
“We’re also doing a little bit of restoration on some of the kids’ play equipment, generally weak what they want done and they can give us a list of in priority and we chip away at it as best as we possibly can,”
“Often when you are working a full-time job or a normal job if you want to volunteer or you want to contribute to the community somehow it can be hard because of work so being able to incorporate that and have a job where people can help is really good.”
Habitat for Humanity’s corporate partners include Peninsular Shades, BGIS, the Commonwealth Games Committee, Core Logic, ICON, Jetcharge, LeavePlus, Partridge, Seymour Whyte, Wells Fargo, Morgans and Turner and Townsend; all of which contributed to the 40-person group of volunteers who visited the site at some point to help out.
Habitat for Humanity Victoria’s Executive Director Phillip Curtis said they have been working with Benwerren since 2020.
“This was an opportunity to put in a more concentrated effort, make a much bigger difference and get some jobs done to improve the amenity and ambience of the facility,” he said.
“It’s such a peaceful place out there and to be able to maximise the use of the environment, I just think it gives everyone a boost.”
Weeding and mulching of the garden beds, fire prevention work, clearing debris and tidying up the entrance were also all on the list for volunteers and all materials were either provided by Habitat for Humanity or from other donations such as the mulch coming from someone who stayed at Benwerren in their childhood.
Mr Curtis said Habitat for Humanity is all about helping people have a decent place to live.
“Whether it’s offering them the opportunity to partner with us to build a new home or it’s working with a refuge and improving the conditions there for the residents or working with individuals who can’t maintain their property, we want to be able to go in and make a hands-on difference with a team of volunteers,” he said.
“We get a win for the organisation, we get a win for the volunteers who feel that they’ve made a difference through their hard work and contribution, and we also feel that we’ve made a difference for those we’ve helped.”
