Young Lion… Natasha Korbut has returned to Hillside after volunteering at a peace camp for wounded and diseased children. 59785 Picture: DAMJAN JANEVSKI
By Belinda Nolan
The Hillside resident has recently returned from Germany where she volunteered at a peace camp caring for diseased and wounded children from troubled war zones including Afghanistan, Angola and Turkmenistan.
It was a life changing experience for the 21-year-old who spent three months working with young burns victims, providing medical and emotional care.
It was a rewarding but often deeply disturbing trip for the young woman, who witnessed horrors many would struggle to imagine.
“There was one little boy from Afghanistan who I will always remember,” Natasha said.
“We were looking at a book together and there was a picture of a soldier holding a machine gun.
“His face just lit up and he pointed to it and said ‘Afghanistan.’
“That was really upsetting for me because I thought it was so sad that he associated his home with machine guns.
“That’s something that just shouldn’t happen.”
A Victoria University student, Natasha is currently studying orthotics and prosthetics, skills she put to good use during her time in Germany.
A member of the Sunshine City Lions Club, Natasha has raised more than $20,000 for charities, including the Children First Foundation and Beyond Blue.
She has also volunteered for the St Vinnies Soup Van, delivering food to Melbourne’s homeless.
But her efforts have not gone unnoticed.
Last month she was named Melton Council’s Youth Citizen of the Year, during the shire’s Australia Day celebrations.
“I was quite surprised and very honoured,” she said.
“Melton’s quite a big place and I never thought I would be singled out like that.
“It was very touching.”
Other award winners included skier Lydia Lassila and the Melton Bowling Club.
