This year I have had the privilege of being an Anglicare Ambassador, a part of a team of students who support Anglicare WA and the work they do supporting those in need, especially young people.

As a part of this team, I attended a program launch as well as a training afternoon dedicated that furthered our abilities to be an advocate in our communities.

The main highlight of our year was the inaugural Anglicare Day, which was held in Term 2. This was a day we planned dedicated to fundraising for Anglicare WA, and involved a sausage sizzle and the opportunity for students to wear jumpers for a gold coin donation. We had also been fundraising in the weeks before by giving students the opportunity to see a teacher dye their hair, and on the day several teachers could be found sporting some colourful hairstyles.

Later in the year, several of us were also given the chance to spend an afternoon helping the Year 2s pack “blessing bags” of toiletries which were donated to the salvation army.

In the past this program has also involved going into the city on a Wednesday morning and assisting at the Salvation Army Doorways Café, which provides free breakfast for those in need every morning. While we were all very keen to be a part of this, unfortunately it wasn’t able to go ahead for most of the year. However towards the end of the year it resumed and myself along with some other students were able to go along for one morning. While there, we were mainly serving food and coffee to those who came in, and it was a really great experience getting to speak to those who use the Café and get to know their stories.