On Saturday 8 November, volunteers of the Yarra Ranges had their dedication to the local community recognised at the 2025 Casey Volunteer and Community Awards.
Among the 70 individuals who had their community service acknowledged, six were from the Healesville region.
These recipients included: Kathleen Riley from the Badger Creek Hall, Secretary of the Badger Creek Hall Kathleen Cameron, Member of the Coldstream Fire Brigade Robert Bethell, President of the Healesville Soccer Club Suzanne Tyzack, Member of the Healesville Lions Club Elaine Dossor, and Robyn Davey from the Yarra Glen and Healesville Combined Churches Op Shop.
Community Group recipients included: She Won’t be Right Mate, which is based in Yarra Glen, Southern Cross Kids’ Camps Yarra Ranges, and The Philanthropic Collective.
Secretary of the Badger Creek Hall Kathleen Cameron has served at the hall for 20 years with her primary role involving taking bookings and showing people around the hall.
“Any community space is an asset and the Badger Creek Hall is 100 years old now,” Ms Cameron said.
“It was built by local people in a day and a half with no government funding,” she said.
“The whole ethos of the hall is to be available for the community and its residents.”
The hall is not supported by the Yarra Ranges Council, however does receive some funding from the Department of Energy, the Environment and Climate Action.
“The hall is only modest and we can only do a little at a time,” Ms Cameron said.
Ms Cameron is the carer of a handicapped adult and cannot work a full-time job.
“I can’t work full time so it is nice to contribute to the community and feel appreciated,” Ms Cameron said.
“It was delightful to receive the award and also humbling to be amongst so many amazing volunteer people. They are all doing such a wonderful job.”
Treasurer of the Badger Creek Hall Kathleen Riley has also been volunteering at the hall for 20 years.
“I volunteer to help ensure the historic Badger Creek Hall remains a feature of our local area and a community gathering point,” Ms Riley said.
“It has been an important location in my own life, being the host of Healesville Spinners and Weavers of which I am a long time member,” she said.
“I like being able to give back to the community and help to preserve the history of my hometown.”
Ms Riley’s role as Treasurer involves managing the Hall’s finances, participation in planning community events, and helping organise the upkeep and development of the hall to keep it functional and a relevant feature for the Badger Creek Community.
“I was honoured to be recognised for my work,” Ms Riley said.
“I am appreciative of those that took the time to nominate me.”
Member of the Coldstream Fire Brigade Robert Bethell had no idea that he would receive anything at all at the Casey Volunteer and Community Awards.
“It was a bit of a surprise when they called my name out,” Mr Bethell said.
“Volunteering is an Australian custom that seems to be dying,” he said.
“We are increasingly finding ourselves short of leadership and numbers in the area of volunteering.”
Mr. Bethell has volunteered at the Coldstream CFA for over 60 years.
Growing up on a farm in Lilydale, Mr Bethell joined the CFA after fires threatened the local area.
“I wanted to help out, so I guess it all started there,” Mr Bethell said.
“We volunteered and built our own fire station. The Coldstream fire station. We had to, as a volunteer group, buy a block of land and build the station” he said.
“The CFA supplied uniforms and trucks, but the rest of the system is voluntary.”
Mr Bethell would like to see more volunteers join the CFA.
“I would be happy if we could get a few more volunteers in the brigade,” Mr Bethell said.
“There should be far more volunteering in general.”
President of the Healesville Soccer Club Suzanne Tyzack’s role involves a little bit of everything.
From communications with members, managing club rooms, liaising with the league and running the canteen, to organising events, connecting with the council about facility upgrades, Ms Tyzack has her finger in every pie.
“This is my sixth year. I got involved when my son wanted to start playing when he was six, – he is now almost 13,” Ms Tyzack said.
“I love being part of creating a strong local community club where kids can have fun playing sports and families have a place to connect.”
Ms Tyzack has a background in hospitality and finds that her work at the club is an extension of her much loved work experience.
“I like serving and making people happy and if kids are happy, then generally the parents are too,” Ms Tyzack said.
When it comes to volunteering and its role in the community, Ms Tyzack emphasised its importance.
“Without volunteers, there would be no grassroots sports clubs. My son plays multiple sports at different clubs and I see so many people that do so much but also many families who are busy with work and have multiple kids doing a dozen different things and other life stuff going on, that makes it hard for them to also volunteer,” Ms Tyzack said.
“If you have the time and the skills to help a local sporting club, it is a no brainer and it is very rewarding.”
“Even if it is just a small contribution, everything helps. People are often scared to commit as they don’t know what will be expected of them but if more people put their hand up, the less the burden falls on just a few people,” she said.
Upon receiving her award, Ms Tyzack confirmed she was very appreciative about being nominated, albeit she felt a little uncomfortable talking about it.
“We really do have a lot of people at Healesville Soccer Club that put in an enormous amount of time and effort to keep the club thriving.”
“Often they don’t get noticed because the things they are doing behind the scenes just happen and the club runs well because of it,” she said.
“This award is recognition of all our volunteers’ work, our committee, coaches, parent helpers etc.”
Ms Tyzack noted she was also inspired hearing about what the other volunteer award recipients are doing in the community.
“There are a lot of good people out there,” Ms Tyzack said.
Having just turned 90, Healesville resident Elaine Dossor has been actively involved in community fundraising through the Healesville Lions Club for over 57 years.
Unable to join the club with her husband in 1968 due to it being a men’s only club, Ms Dossor took the only role then open to women and became an associate Lady of Lions. In this role she participated in fundraising volunteer work on behalf of the community.
When the Healesville Lions Club opened membership to women in 2000, Ms Dossor was one of the club’s first female members and has since been the club’s treasurer for 17 years.
Upon receiving the award, Ms Dossor said, “What is all the fuss about? Volunteering is just what you do.”
“It is not about one person. It takes a team and it takes a community. – That is what the Lions Club has always been,” she said.
Instrumental in establishing the Lions Den Opportunity Shop, Ms Dossor now manages a small band of volunteers over a six-day week and is personally there most days, either at the shop or in the back room sorting, pricing, and labelling donated items, and keeping the books.
Ms Dossor said, “I am simply carrying on the work of those who came before me, though I am proud that many of the charity programs we started so long ago are still helping people today.”
The Healesville Lions Club submitted Ms Dossor’s nomination said, “To put Elaine’s contribution in statistical terms, she has devoted over 50,000 hours of unpaid voluntary work to Healesville and surrounding districts, helping to raise over $2million for a wide range of community recipients.”
“The beneficiaries of these efforts are local schools, sporting clubs, community groups and charities covering an area as widespread as Woori Yallock, Dixons Creek and Toolangi, as well as broader Lions Club initiatives such as disaster relief, cancer research and third world eye health programmes.”
Volunteer at the Yarra Glen and Healesville Combined Churches Op Shop Robyn Davey’s favourite thing about volunteering is sewing the contagious seeds of goodwill in the community.
Ms Davey said, “You really do get back what you put in and I have always believed that if you do something voluntarily, not expecting anything in return, people will see the good that you do, and they will pass it on.”
“I have seen this with some of the other customers who have now become volunteers. They came in and enjoyed being there so much that they have now themselves become volunteers,” Ms Davey said.
When her daughter told her that she had to attend the award night, Ms Davey was not initially too keen on going, but ended up enjoying the experience.
“Hearing other people’s stories was amazing. There were a few who I thought really deserved award more than I did,” Ms Davey said.
“I think it is good to realise that there are so many different areas and types of volunteering and these areas take all different kinds of people.”
“Events like this really make you feel a part of this big volunteer community,” she said.
With International Volunteer Day coming up on 5 December, it is a good time to reflect on all of the hard work that goes into keeping the Yarra Ranges community afloat.
