VoRTCS volunteers come from every walk of life.  There are students, professionals, tradesmen, mothers, fathers, doctors, teachers, and a surprising number of lawyers.  Some of our tutors are at university, some professionals in their twenties and thirties, some are parents with school children themselves, and some have seen their children graduate from high school and have the generosity of spirit to help someone else’s children do the same. 

What we have in common at VoRTCS is a belief that refugees are a valuable addition to Australia, with the potential to contribute an enormous amount to our society.  Their humanity deserves that they are made welcome and helped to find their way.

We want to help them do this not out of pity, but out of friendship, respect and empathy.  Refugees are incredibly dignified and courageous people.  They have been forced to leave their home country because of war or other horrendous events, and have endured months or years in refugee camps with little food and security.  They have lost family members and friends, and many still do not know whether their loved ones are alive.  And yet they have the courage to begin again, to bring their children to Australia hoping to give them a chance to grow up without war or danger.

There are currently more than 700 VoRTCS volunteer tutors assisting refugee families around South East Queensland in the Refugee Tutoring program.

Volunteering for VoRTCS is a chance to share something so much more valuable than money or material goods.  We don’t ask that our volunteers are teachers or counsellors, or that they made straight-A’s in high school, or that they have a long resume full of tutoring experience.  VoRTCS is about community members sharing their everyday knowledge and skills with those are new to our community. It is about each of us giving what we can of our learning, our time and our experiences to those who need assistance.  Whether this is working with a child to learn how to use a dictionary, helping a single mother to prepare for an appointment using her new language, or watching a teenager smile when she tells you about a good grade she has received at school, it is about helping people become more self sufficient.  And if you talk with our volunteers, many will say that the experience is just as rewarding for them as it is for the families they work with. Of course, the families’ smiles also tell a story.

For many refugees, settling in Australia means that at last they have a place they can call home and feel safe. We at VoRTCS believe it's important that they are able to stand back up and become independent again, and by giving a hand, we can help this along.

Because there, but for the winds of fate, go you and I.

Claire Schneider
President - VoRTCS