Community day is
one of the most important staples of the Carnival schedule. It allows
participants a chance to learn about and become a part of a number of important
organisations and institutions in and around the host city who make a
difference in the lives of those less fortunate than ourselves. 2016 saw Carnival
participants head to 16 different locations around Sydney to help those in
need, learn about their heritage or become educated on other important societal
issues and ways we can fix them. Originally 19 wonderful organisations offered
to take on participants but unfortunately due to weather activities at Clean up
Australia, Save the Children, North West Disability Services and Easy Care
Gardening had to be cancelled. A big thank you must also go to Chabad North
Shore who offered to take participants at the very last minute!
Community Day organiser Leanne Shelton was over the
moon that all her hard work paid off and culminated in a fantastic day of
volunteering for all. “While it was a stressful morning of sorting out last
minute relocations, all of the reports I’ve heard have been very positive,”
Shelton said, “I’d like to thank all the organisations for coming on board and
I hope everyone had a memorable experience and will continue to do more
volunteering in the future.”
Continue reading down the page for summaries of
each individual volunteering experience!
Advantaged Care - Bondi Waters
The 8 Participants who did their
volunteering at Bondi Waters Aged Care facility began their experience with a
tour around the building before engaging in an inter-generational game of
bowling involving both kids and residents. Next, participants sat and ate lunch
with residents in the dining room whilst mingling and enjoying each other’s
company. Finally, the participants helped residents in their preparations for
Australia day.
Resident Pat Kenny had the
following to say about Maccabi Carnival’s successful visit to Bondi Waters.
“They have fitted in well and
haven’t made any noise. The kids are very well-mannered, something which you
don’t see a lot in kids their age these days. I think it’s a lovely concept;
years ago there wasn’t anything like this. The residents have really enjoyed
having the kids here.”
Animal Welfare League NSW
Participants who
volunteered at the Animal Welfare League opened their day by preparing a
morning meal for the cats residing there and also had the opportunity to feed
it to them whilst brushing and grooming the adorable felines. Following this,
participants played with puppies and took a few lucky canines on a walk before
engaging in a mini-training session with command and rewards for the dogs.
Arthritis & Osteoporosis NSW
A Brainstorming session about how
to raise awareness for arthritis saw participants come up with various ideas
for arts, crafts and games to be undertaken at camps run by host organisation
Arthritis and Osteoporosis NSW. The kids then helped with administration tasks
such as sorting brochures and opening mail.
Assistance
Dogs Australia
Fundraising for assistance dogs Australia
in Sydney’s CBD was incredibly successful and culminated in the raising
hundreds of dollars for their organisation. The highlight of the day was the
opportunity to meet a woman whose nephew was the same age as participants and is
a beneficiary of the charity.
B'nai
B'rith Courage to Care
Courage to Care put on an amazing
program for our Maccabi participants; explaining the power of propaganda and
the media and, the importance of standing up against bullying and
discrimination. The kids then had the opportunity to listen to a holocaust
survivor’s story and then create their own powerful posters on a social issue
important to them. Some incredible posters were designed which displayed
amazing thoughts from our future generation about important societal concerns.
Chabad North Shore
Volunteers at
Chabad North Shore had the opportunity to spend time helping out in their
vacation care as well as baking challah amongst other activities.
Friendship Circle NSW
Carnival participants
were given the opportunity to spend a morning playing games, sport and bonding
with Friendship Circle members. Split into groups of three, all participants
were able to forge relationships with their Friendship Circle partners at a one
on one level. Carnival participants walked away with a new perspective on
people with special needs and a desire to ensure that Maccabi and their
respective societies becomes more inclusive.
New South Wales
participant Ryan Mayer was glowing about his experience at the Friendship
Circle:
“We had a lot of
fun and it was really interactive with the kids. I loved the person I was working
with; she was super great. It’s an awesome experience to be with these kids and
learning how they work and feel because a lot of their emotion comes out. It feels
great to give back to the community. I’ve never really felt like this when
doing community service; we’re making a real difference to real people which is
the best thing someone can do.”
Jewish House
Volunteers at
Jewish House helped pack gift bags whilst organising the kitchen and cupboards
with a stocktake of all the donated food and supplies Jewish house have received.
Proceeding this, participants also helped tidy up the house so it stays in tip
top shape for the clients who stay there.
Our Big Kitchen
The 65 Carnival
kids who visited Our Big Kitchen in Bondi had the opportunity to bake challah
from start to finish as well as making cookies for the homeless.
Our Big Kitchen’s
Laya Slavin had only good things to say about the participants who she guided
through the baking process.
“Maccabi kids are
fantastic and have a real ruach about them. It isn’t just challah dough; they
are experiencing a lot more than that. Each child has made 2 challahs today. One
will be going to their family or their billet’s family and the other is to give
to someone to put a smile on their face. They will also be making cookies for
the homeless. The kids have been really well behaved and look to be having a
great time.”
Oz Harvest Food Rescue
Kids who spent the
day at Maccabi’s Offices with OzHarvest spent their time organising and sorting
the donations made by Carnival participants this week. They listened intently
to a presentation by a representative of the organisation and ensured the foodstuffs
were ready for collection.
Stand Up:
Jewish Commitment to a Better World
Icebreakers. Listened to the
story of Yarrie Bangura, a Sierra Leonan refugee and basically linked it to Jewish
responsibility. Because our grandparents too were persecuted it’s our responsibility.
Got some inspiration from posters about freedom and liberty and painted a
canvas each about what it meant to stand up for what we believe in. Thinking
about what we can do to stand up for everyone.
SummitCare
Nursing Home Randwick (Frenchman's Lodge)
Participants who visited
SummitCare Nursing Home Randwick spent their day meeting the residents and
assisting with other activities.
Sydney Jewish Museum
The Sydney Jewish
Museum was the biggest of our volunteer locations in terms of the number of
participants taken on. 100 Carnival kids spent Community Day at the SJM
learning about their heritage and the history of the Jewish people. Beginning
with a guided tour around the museum, the participants also heard lectures from
SJM staff as well as being treated to a testimonial from a holocaust survivor.
“It’s nice but also sad to see what happened during the World War Two period
and hearing from the survivors,” said Tal Levin of Western Australia, “I think
learning about the holocaust enhances our Jewish connection and is really
important so we never forget what happened in the past.”
Thread
Together
Thread Together is an
organisation that collects off-season clothing from big clothing brands and
donates them to the less fortunate. Participants helped to organise the clothing
into sizes and categories so that they were ready for distribution. There were
over 140,000 pieces of clothing on site and the organisation is able to help a
multitude of charities all over the country by providing them with these
clothes.
Together
for Humanity
An organisation
where there were representatives from 4 different religious beliefs. Amongst
the representatives were a Muslim, a Jew, A Christian and an atheist. The
participants had the opportunity to ask questions and answer questions around
each different stream of faith. Following this, the kids participated in a few
different activities which encouraged them to critically think about different
global issues and scenarios relating to different cultures and religions.
Wesley Mission
Participants were set the challenge of feeding a homeless
person in the best way possible for just $5. The kids learnt a lot about the
multitude of reasons why someone may end up homeless and were left with a
greater knowledge of the world surrounding homeless men, women and children.
Thanks for reading.
Written by Jake Rosengarten.
Photos by Jess Cohen and Talia Binkin.
