Edna Allen has been volunteering at Ballarat VA for 47 years.
Edna first came across Vision Australia when her mum used to attend. She would pick her Mum up and another client and drive them to the Day Program on a weekly basis using her own car. The program operated out of two bedrooms in Kelaston Association for the Blind.
Over the years Edna has enjoyed volunteering as a driver, jockey and day program helper. She talks fondly of her volunteering time and has many happy memories. Edna remembers having many many laughs while driving clients to and from VA and she also recalls some crying as well when clients were going through some hard times. There was one time when Edna pulled into a court to do her usual pick up and she couldn’t stop laughing.
This particular client lived on a steep slope and they had to walk down a lot of stairs to get to the car. Edna pulled in and looked up the stairs to see the client standing up the top with her bloomers around her ankles yelling out “you’ll have to wait because I’m having trouble with my hemeroids this morning.” It took a lot of self discipline for Edna to compose herself before the client got into the car.
While volunteering in the Day Program her favourite place to be was in the kitchen because Edna said “she couldn’t get into trouble in there.”
And in Edna’s own words “I’m in my 80’s now so I think I deserve to retire.”
What a fabulous 47 years Edna has had at Vision Australia.
