International Volunteer Day 2019 - Why We Volunteer 2!

 

To continue the International Volunteer Day blogs, Connecting Up Inc. felt we should introduce you to some more of our wonderful volunteers, many who have been with us for some time with one or two brand new volunteers. Welcome to our Tuesday group.

Anuradha Gakhar
Anu is one of our other new volunteers, having joined Connecting Up to experience the work culture of Australia and improve her interpersonal/networking skills and employability. Anu is an e-learning and digital marketing professional with experience in the IT training and education industry.  

 

Anu's main interest is in user experience, website and learning material design, lead generation and analytics. She has since transitioned from our organisation into further study, however plans to return to Connecting Up at the end of her course whilst she looks for paid work in the training and assessment domain.

 

Erin
Erin began volunteering in November 2017 whilst studying Administration at TAFE SA, when the SAcommunity team presented the benefits of volunteering and our volunteer program to her TAFE SA Business Administration class. Fortunately for the team Erin has stayed on with us, continuing to volunteer regularly for more than 2 years.

Erin joined Connecting Up initially to gain hands on experience in general administration and data entry as well as an understanding of office culture, whilst completing TAFE Certificates in Business Administration, Health Administration and Accounts Administration. Over time, the SAcommunity directory and the volunteer program has gained from Erin's range of skills, including her self-taught talents in video production and editing, with Erin creating e-learning modules for volunteer training.

Erin has enjoyed building workplace relationships and networking at Connecting Up and is looking forward to finding employment in a similar field to match her studies. Find more about Erin's Volunteer Experience at Connecting Up here:>>

Faisal Chowdhury
Faisal volunteered with Connecting Up Inc. briefly before moving into a new paid position [Editors Note: Congratulations Faisal!], however before he left he introduced SAcommunity to a new service oganisation he was involved in, the  South Australian Bangladeshi Community Association (SABCA). Faisal wrote articles on the organisation and their community events including their performance in the 2019 Multicultural Festival >>here and the Multicultural Festival and Victory Day Celebration of Bangladesh.

Faisal provides a great example of the connections many our volunteers have with the community,  and we appreciate the insights and the assistance (and in many cases languages) they can bring to our service, improving our directory for everyone.  

Nirupama Amarakoon
Niru has been a volunteer for four months with Connecting Up joining us in September 2019, she has written first-hand about her volunteer experience (below).

As a post-graduate diploma holder in Information Systems and Project Management, my aim is to pursue a career in the not-for-profit sector in Australia. I am undertaking volunteer work at Connecting Up to learn more about the local culture and the community sector, improve my career development and guide me to paid employment opportunities. Joining Connecting Up I believe has given me the prospect of developing new skills, building on my existing knowledge and gaining practical experience in the real world. 

Connecting Up helps me to gain valuable technical skills such as Microsoft Project, Power BI, Microsoft Teams, Office365, WordPress and database skills. Communicating with customers, corresponding with the members of the community and working with my colleagues gave me an opportunity to improve my soft skills as well. Currently I'm engaging in customer inquiries and verifying and editing contents on the SAcommunity directory. 

Working as a volunteer has always been rewarding, not only can you give something back to the community, but I have thoroughly enjoyed the role and the opportunities it presented to me. During my tenure as a volunteer at Connecting Up, I hope to gain more exposure in project management, expand my technical and soft skills and pave the way for a brighter future. 

Lan Pham
Lan has a Master of Education from the University of Adelaide and an interest in educational research, teaching and training formerly working as a market researcher and now working as a private mathematics tutor.
 

Lan began volunteering with Connecting Up to gain an understanding of the different service sectors and community organisations in South Australia and its networks. Lan is currently focussing on communication techniques from her mentor Eric Jenkins, Account Manager. Welcome Lan!
 

Why we Volunteer - hear from our volunteers on the following blog posts
International Volunteer Day 2019

International Volunteer Day 2019 - Why We Volunteer 1!

International Volunteer Day 2019 - Why We Volunteer 2!

International Volunteer Day 2019 - Why We Volunteer 3!

International Volunteer Day 2019 - Why We Volunteer 4!

International Volunteer Day 2019 - Why We Volunteer 5!