VERY Special Kids, a support organisation for children with life-threatening illnesses, is seeking volunteers in Yarraville with a heart for helping.
West Footscray’s Baker family paints a clear picture of how valuable volunteers can be.
Samuel Baker, 7, was born with an undiagnosed disability, leaving him in need of constant care. “Samuel was very tiny and very sick when he was born,” his mother Lynne said. “He weighed just 1.7 kg and spent the first 11 weeks of his life in hospital.”
The Bakers were told about Very Special Kids by their paediatrician who felt that at six months old, Samuel’s condition could be life threatening
“He’d suffered several strokes and he needs a feeding tube in his tummy. His body wasn’t growing and developing normally,” Mrs Baker said.
On top of running their household, looking after Samuel can be an exhaustive experience for the Bakers. Very Special Kids volunteer Laura Forrest, 27, was paired up with the Bakers over two years ago and provides Samuel’s family with much needed rest. “She comes and plays with the kids and gives them some attention that I can’t always give,” Mrs Baker said.
“She takes the bigger two kids to the beach or the swimming pool and plays games with Samuel, sings songs, reads books. She gives me a chance to cook dinner and catch up with things a bit,” she said. “Samuel loves it when she comes.”
Very Special Kids provides family-support volunteers with 27 hours of training spread out over nine weeks. “The training is great, you learn along with a group of other volunteers. It teaches you to think about what it would be like living with a child with special needs. It really makes you think outside the perspective of your life and think about things you might not usually come across,” Ms Forrest said.
Very Special Kids currently works closely with more than 800 families in Victoria but there is always need for further help. “Just having a volunteer has been a fantastic help to our family. It’s really nice to know there are other people out there that want to help you,” Mrs Baker said.
Volunteers should be willing to commit to at least 12 months of support, spending an average of four hours per week with a family. For information on volunteering with Very Special Kids call 9319 9422.
