My Volunteer Experience - Rex Porter

Photo: Rex Porter SAcommunity Team Member at the Connecting Up Office, Infoxchange
An active volunteer Rex works with both Connecting Up and at Prospect Council's Digital Hub in the library, more recently with their Community bus service. "At this stage of life, I'm not working and I have time on my hands where I can make a voluntary contribution to the community," he says.
Total Hours 1,769 This Year 93 Joined 22 March 2019 Last Check-in 26 February 2025
Photo: Rex Porter in some of his bold, bright shirts bringing colour to the office and simply making our day!
SAcommunity wanted to highlight our affection for 'the old guard' our experienced and established SAcommunity veterans. People who make up our core team, return regularly each week to volunteer and keep the service running.
They assist in decision-making, idea development and implementation, check and create processes, and critically, help our new volunteers and interns find their feet. We felt we were more than overdue to introduce, acknowledge and thank some of our team members.
Photo: Volunteers Rex Porter, Blake Kennison, Stathis Avramis and Hang Zhang (after cake!)
Rex explains his Volunteer Information Officer role: "At Connecting Up I help to update SAcommunity, a directory of community service organisations. This directory is used by many people when they are looking for services and also by state and local governments when contacting community organisations. I’m playing my part in keeping this valuable directory up to date. Hopefully this will also help community organisations in gaining access to government grants." he says.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rex worked in the Digital Hub at the Prospect Library, assisting people with their digital devices. "At the City of Prospect, I volunteer in the Digital Hub in the library. I provide one on one assistance to people with their digital products - mainly phones, tablets and laptop computers. I find that many new users of these devices are scared that they might damage their equipment. I enjoy encouraging people to have a go. People often come in for several visits and it’s good to see their skills improving as they go."
More recently Rex has been volunteering with the Community Bus service, where he helps older people travel locally for library visits, grocery shopping and day trips.
Photo: L - R Tina Vuong, Customer Engagement Manager, Infoxchange, Pankaj Chhalotre, Head of Connecting Up, Volunteer Stathis Avramis and Rex Porter National Volunteer Week 2021
Specifically, Rex's degree in Mathematical Science and his extensive experience working in the Australian Government sector, specifically the Australian Bureau of Statistics is greatly beneficial to the SAcommunity service. His understanding of the government sector has proven useful on multiple occasions when determining where services belong, their hierachy and lineage, and in identifying their parent bodies, particularly with changes to departmental names and/or responsibilities over time.
Image: Flavia with Rex Porter at the Connecting Up Office
In the SAcommunity program, Rex also takes on various information management projects, updating critical directory categories such as services providing food assistance, to ensuring record fields are correct across councils and electorates for data exports, and for use by both Data Analytics Team and Media and Communications Team to improve records and increase data use. Rex also welcomes and helps new volunteers to the service, assists newcomers in practicing their telephone techniques, and provides a refreshing dose of realism and humour to the office alongside his fantastic shirt collection.
Photo: Volunteer Rex assisting Intern Stephanie Hoi Ching Wu to contact organisations for media releases
Image: Rex Porter assisting Volunteer Hang Zhang practice Telephone Techniques
Including:
Connecting Up Staff Meetings - 13 February 2024
An Introduction to Jo Davies COO of Infoxchange
Infoxchange All-Staff Town Hall Quarterly Meetings - 27 February 2024
To find out more about the organisation's aims strategies and goals.

"I enjoy volunteering. I get to meet all sorts of people and pass on the skills I've gained over the years," he says. Rex enjoys being part of a diverse volunteer team, which comprises of people from various ages, cultural and educational backgrounds who are eager to share their skills, knowledge and experiences with others. He is pleased that the time he has spent volunteering has made a tangible difference to those in the community who are seeking information on community organisations that can help them and that they can participate in. ~ Thank you Rex!

Training and Development - Digital Learning Platform
Volunteers undertake 4 hours a week: 2hrs 48mins project; 48 mins peer-to-peer; 24 mins formal learning
Volunteers undertake 7.5 hours a week: 5hrs 15min project; 1hr 30mins peer-to-peer; 45mins formal learning
Volunteers (such as Rex) undertake 15hours a week (max): 10hrs 30mins project; 3hrs peer-to-peer; 1hr 30mins formal learning.

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Image: National Volunteer Week Celebrations 2024: Rex Porter, Violet, Jamie, David, Camille, Jay, Olivia, Alexander, Pujan and Stathis
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