Celebrating our volunteers during National Volunteer Week
Published on 06 May 2026
Image: Bushcare volunteer Rob with a Council staff member
During National Volunteer Week (18 - 24 May 2026) we celebrate and thank volunteers for the vital role they play in our community, and communities across the country.
Woollahra Council is lucky to have more than 150 volunteers who help our community in various ways such as in our libraries, the Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf, at our Bushcare regeneration sites and through our HarbourCare program.
In addition, corporate and community groups have held their own beach and park clean ups, volunteering their time to help keep our local environment looking beautiful.
Sabrina, Sophie, Sean and Jean Marco from Ben & Jerry's rolled up their sleeves to help with weeding and planting - and thanks to their efforts, Cooper Park now has 100 new seedlings.
A BIG Thank You To All Our Incredible Volunteers
During National Volunteer Week we have the opportunity to thank all our incredible volunteers for sharing their time, skills and enthusiasm with us.
Mayor of Woollahra Sarah Dixson said each year volunteers are invited to a thank you morning tea so they know how much we appreciate their contributions.
"Lots of our volunteers have been working alongside our staff and in our community for many years, and some are new recruits, together they share a genuine love of our community and our local area and they are all inspirational," the Mayor said.
"Happy Volunteer Week to all our volunteers and to all the other members of the community who give their time and energy to so many great local organisations and causes," she said.
Bushcare volunteers
Celebrating 20 Years of Bushcare
This year we are celebrating 20 years of Bushcare, our community-based program where volunteers work alongside Council staff to help regenerate and preserve Woollahra's bushland.
Over the last 20 years we have enjoyed the company of volunteers who have joined us every week for many years, and others who just pop in whenever they can.
"It's a great mix of people and some of us have formed lifelong friendships," Bushcare Liaison Officer Rudi Adlmayer said.
Find out more and hear from long-serving Bushcare volunteer Rob Hitchen.
Meet some of our volunteers
Below you can meet some of our volunteers and hear what they love about it.
Kay, library volunteer
Kay is one of our longest serving library volunteers, and she assists with the delivery of library items to housebound residents in our community.
“I always enjoy coming to volunteer, especially with the Home Library Service. The Home Library members love receiving their deliveries and get so much joy from it,” Kay said.
Alex, Code Club volunteer
Alex is a tech whizz who volunteers as one of our talented Code Club Facilitators. Code Club is a library program designed to teach children Scratch and Python programming languages to create, connect, and challenge a community of young coders.
"I work in a full-time corporate job, so teaching kids something fun is really rewarding. There are some great coders in the club, so they challenge me and my technical skills too!" Alex said.
Idy, library volunteer
Idy is one of our incredible Slide Monitor volunteers at Double Bay Library, she’s been volunteering with us for 6 years, helping everyone to stay safe on the library’s much-loved slippery slide.
"I moved to Australia 10 years ago from Hong Kong and felt that it was important to contribute to this community. I work in after school care as well, so I love meeting children and learning from them. They help me understand my new community in an easy, simple way,” Idy said.
Interested in volunteering with Woollahra Council?
If you're interested in volunteering your time, we’d love to hear from you! Our Bushcare, Libraries and Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf are always on the look out for new volunteers. It's a great way to make new connections, have some fun and give back to your community.
Our webpage has more information about the different volunteer roles available at Woollahra Council and how you can get in touch.
We also have a list of other local volunteering opportunities, with organisations including Holdsworth, Our Big Kitchen and more!
Corporate group from La Prairie doing a clean-up at Rose Bay Foreshore