Congratulations to Sally Gifford, who has been nominated for the RAC Volunteering Award for her outstanding contribution to the Chittering-Gingin St John Ambulance sub-centre over the last 16 years.
Sally was humble in learning of her nomination: “I was very surprised to be nominated for this award, I feel that there are many people in the St John Ambulance Chittering-Gingin Sub-Centre who deserve recognition for their contribution to the ambulance service and the community far more than I do!”
However, Sally’s exhaustive list of contributions would suggest otherwise — she has been involved in everything from recruitment, catering, fundraising and dispatching to chairing the building committee, representing the ambulance service on the local emergency management committee, and as a director on the St John Ambulance WA board. Her time, travel, monetary contributions, energy and enthusiasm dedicated to the entire organisation is something her peers wished to formally acknowledge in the nomination
While Sally has taken on many roles and overseen numerous projects during her time as a volunteer, the ones that stand out to her are the building of the new sub-centre in Gingin, and being part of the team that celebrated the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the sub-centre.
Sally has the following advice for those considering volunteering: “So many country towns depend on volunteers to come to their aid in times of stress, whether the emergency is a fire, illness or accident. By joining the local St John sub-centre and carrying out your duties as a volunteer ambulance officer you will be making a huge contribution to the welfare of your community. You will learn many new skills, work as part of a team and have the satisfaction of a job well done. As a new volunteer with St John Ambulance you will be given three months to decide if you wish to continue with the organisation or not, so come on give it a go — you have little to lose and so much to gain!”
We wish Sally the best of luck with her nomination!
The Chittering-Gingin St John Ambulance Subcentre has also been nominated in the 2017 Western Australian Regional Achievement and Community
Awards, in the Horizon Power Leadership and Innovation section.
